Awakening
by Cry-Pom
Summary: Part of the Iter Teipsum Dispicias Series read "The Unknown Variable" before or you won't understand. After everything they had gone through their story had just begun. Danger is rising, the Dimension and the Realm are in jeopardy, and the clues to save them are held in lost memories. They are called upon once again to restore Balance where all else has failed. (full sum. inside)
1. I am & I have been(unbeta'd)

Awakening

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Summery

Part of the Iter Teipsum Dispicias Series read "The Unknown Variable" before or you won't understand.

After everything they had gone through their story had just begun. Danger is rising, the Dimension and the Realm are in jeopardy, and the clues to save them are held in lost memories. They are called upon once again to restore Balance where all else has failed & our heroine must Awaken to discover the plot. But to do that, she might just have to reveal herself to the world.

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**I, Cry-Pom, in all of my wonderful glory, own nothing. Disney, Marvel, and JK Rowling have those pleasures. SO BUG THEM INSTEAD OF ME!**

**Here, we begin again, together again, once again, I give you Penny: :)**

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Prologue

I have had many names over the years, and you know me by many of them.

I have been Harry James Potter,  
I have been Danny,  
I have been Death,  
I have been a Jane, a John, Lynx, Yana, Ryn, and so many other countless names that I have lost track.

Recently, I have been known as Penny, secret daughter to genius billionaire Tony Stark.

I have lived, and I have died many times.

I have loved and I have lost.

So many things make up of who I am.

So many stories I have lived that I could tell.

I am Bonded, I am a Sister.

I have been a friend, a college, a daughter, an employee.

I have been so many things.

I have lived so many lives.

I've had to endure so many horrors.

But in the end, does it all matter?

Does what I do, the people I save, the Balance I restore…is it all worth it?

It is.

I have doubted myself for so long…unsure of where I belong.

Finally, and finally after all of these years, I have found my place. I have found my home, and I finally understand what I have been blind to for so long.

I was blind to those around me who were using me, who wanted me weak, who wanted me ignorant of what was really going on.

In all of Existence everyone has a place; everyone has their own Path they needed to walk.

Until now, my own Path has been hidden from me.

A Path is not something that someone can walk for you, it is something that you must discover on your own, travel on your own and in your own time.

I had been leaning on others, thinking that I could be led on my Path. But I was wrong.

For so many years, I thought that I knew what I was doing.

I thought that part I played in Life was insignificant.

I thought that my Family had dealt me a bad hand, and I was just stuck with it for Eternity.

I thought that Fati's Realm ruled my own; I let myself be manipulated, just like I had in my First Life.

The lessons that I needed to learn were the ones that I hadn't in my First Life.

Because of the mistakes I made, because I ran from my Path, because I didn't embrace who I was…I created my own world.

I created my demons; I let the will of others guide me…

And now I must fix that mistake, now I have to Find my Path again, retake my power back from those I had given it away to.

I have been blind, and now I could see.

I now had a family, one that I had been denied time and time again.

They were my life, and my life was my Realm.

I had been smashed down, torn, beaten, spread thin across time.

But now, now I was strong.

I knew who I was.

I know who I am.

I wasn't meant to walk the Path that others chose for me.

I was meant to walk the Path that I found, that I discovered that I chose.

I was meant to keep the Balance.

I was meant to be myself, for that is what Existence needed.

Finally, I could do that.

Finally, I am free.

I have been many things, I have been many people.

But I am Aequivalere, I am Bonded to the Immortal Mortem.

I am a Sister to Immortals Vitam, Infinitas, and Insania.

I am the daughter to Tony Stark.

I am Balance, for Balance is my Realm and my Soul.

I am an Immortal with a Mortal Form.

And I am back; I will not let anyone steal me away again.

I will Walk my Path, and I will embrace my Path, and I will Lead my Path.

But like every story, there has to be a beginning.

I am Aequivalere, I am Penella Piper Maria Stark, and I am Balance.

This isn't the story of my First Life; this isn't the story of my lives in-between. This story truly started when I finally Awoke.

This is the story of my Awakening.

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**Yes, this was short, but this is the opening the beginning of something so much grander then you all can imagine…it makes me smile just to think about it.**

**Hang on, and get ready.**

**For everything you think you know is about to change.**

**You will Awaken,**

**And I will be ready.**

**Cp**


	2. Let the Game Begin(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing, major companies and JK have all ownership. I am only barrowing their characters through this site. I shall return them (mostly) undamaged when finished.**

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Penny's POV

The Stark Tower was a bright beacon over the town of New York. Hel, Insania and I had been out exploring the city when we felt it.

"Oh…look at that! It's such a nice little birdy!" Insania exclaimed, her attention going from the conversation we were having to the pigeon that flew by.

"Sis," I drawled rolling my eyes at my friend and sister Immortal, "it's a pigeon."

"So?" Insania demanded with a pout.

"So, it's a filthy little…" Hel froze mid-sentence I opened my mouth to ask her what was wrong when I froze too.

All three of us stood frozen in the middle of Central Park, people walking by without sparing us a glance.

My chest tightened and my eyes narrowed as I felt…_something_…shift. Whatever it was, it caused a massive surge that I, even in my limited form, could feel.

A huge amount of energy washed over us and my sparks sung with joy and screamed in horror at the foreign energy at the same time. The energy was strong, and was saturated with a deep cold feeling that it left me gasping and my veins burning.

The energy was vaguely familiar…I just couldn't put my figure on it.

As soon as the energy blast passed, my Soul practically screamed in protest. Something was wrong with my Realm…whatever it was…and it caused my Duties…whatever they were…to call me…heavily.

I stood there, trapped between a second wave of the cold, massive, alien energy and the tormented screams coming from my Soul for two painful minutes before finally, the wave passed and I collapsed onto the ground.

"What….what was that….?" I gasped as Insania, who was usually quiet, helped me to my feet.

The silver and blue haired girl wrapped my arm around her shoulders and helped support my weight as I could barely stand.

Whatever that energy surge was, it had left me feeling shaken and weak, not to mention in pain.

Hel didn't answer, the black haired, violate eyed girl was staring, unseeingly, into the distance.

"Hel?" I asked my century old friend, concerned.

Surly I hadn't been the only one, who had felt the surge, and therefore I wouldn't have been the only one affected…but surly, since Hel was only Asgardian, she wouldn't be as affected as Immortals…even if I was currently only half.

Suddenly the Goddess snapped out of it and her eyes turned red as her cheeks flushed in rage.

"I must go. There's been a major disturbance that has caused many Souls to pass into our Realm before their Time. Everyone's been called in….I'll be back." Hel stated before stepping backwards into a darkened shadow and vanishing.

Damn, something serious must have happed. Sure, sometimes Souls moved into my Bonded's Realm, or died, before they were supposed to. Mostly when some natural disaster or massacre takes place, but for Mortem to call everyone in this dimension in…something must have happened.

That something had to be the massive power surge that I felt. But why would my Duties be yelling at me for that?

"Insania?" I asked, looking towards my friend and Sister who had remained silent the whole time.

"The doorway long ago lost has been open; danger and destruction are at the threshold. The game has been set, and the pawn moved. Those called to Avenge will soon take up arms against a force that is only the beginning." Insania stated, her voice aloft and dreamy.

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion and concentration and I asked her, "How do you know?"

Her words, when serious, rarely made sense, but I had learned to listen to her, no matter how strange it may sound.

She turned to look at me, and for once, her eyes weren't far away, and her gaze was solid.

"I am Chaos. I know all things within my Realm." She said, and her words struck my heart, I had never heard her speak that way before, not even when she was flipping between emotions when she had stopped me from Awakening fully.

She never had given me a reason why she did that.

Her gaze then became clouded again and she looked down at me in humor.

"Little one's tired." She stated with a half-smile. "Let's get you home before your Daddy starts worrying."

I tried to protest, but the strange Immortal would hear none of it. She practically dragged me back to the tower, before making us appear in the elevator.

"Good night, sister dearest." Insania waved before vanishing.

My eyebrows furrowed once again in confusion. It wasn't even seven yet…why did she say goodnight?

Well, Dad would be happy…I was home three hours before curfew…

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Insania POV

I giggled as I watched the Mortals run about like headless chickens. It had been unfortunate that Aequivalere had sensed the Tesseract Worm Hole opening and collapsing…but there was nothing I could do about it.

There was nothing more for me to do then sit back and watch. It was Sister's turn to reclaim her Realm.

I had done what I could.

I giggled again as everything slowly fell into place.

"And so it has begun…" a wide smile split across my face and I laughed, "it's gonna be fun!"

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Bruce's POV  
three hours later

A few months ago, Penny had decided that me being alone with only her as company was a bad idea, and after quite some arguing…

She had convinced me to slowly reemerge myself into civilization.

I was currently in a small village deep within the jungle. A virus had hit the town, like man before it, and people were dying.

I was preparing some more water, to try and lower a man's fever when a small commotion caused by a young, desperate looking girl caught my eye.

The woman, who was the ill man's only remaining relative, tried to shoo the child away, telling her that sickness was here.

I stood up and gazed at the small girl as she begged for the 'doctor' as the locals had started to call me.

If only they knew what I really was.

"My father's not waking up!" The young girl pleaded with the older woman. "He has a fever and he's moaning…"

I walked over, while it had taken a while for me to learn their language, I now had a basic knowledge and to me, it sounded like the illness had taken her father as well.

"…but his eyes won't open!" she exclaimed, and I caught fewer and fewer of her words as she spoke faster and faster.

"Slow down." I stated motioning her to slow it down. I wiped my glasses, which had been a gift from Penny, off of my shirt and slid them on.

"My father…" she said, and glanced at the other side of the room where the ill man and two others, one a child, lay. My eyes narrowed slightly as I noticed that she seemed nervous.

Was she worried for her father or something else?

"Like them?" I asked, pointing towards the end of the room she glanced at.

"Please," she begged in English, holding up two crumbled notes, probably all the money her family had.

I sighed, but stood and followed her.

Why did I have a feeling something was going to go wrong?

The child led me to an old makeshift hut on the far edge of the village. I was instantly suspicious, as the fever had yet to travel this far to my knowledge.

I stopped the child just as a jeep holding military personnel drove by; I turned my head so they wouldn't notice the color of my skin and waited for a moment until they were out of sight before letting the young girl go.

We walked past two elderly men and a young boy sitting around a tiny TV that was barely getting a signal.

I tightened the hold on my bag as I followed the girl through the torn cloths that served as a door, and instantly stiffened as I saw the child climb out the back window.

"Should've gotten paid upfront Banner…" I muttered to myself to distract whomever was here.

The girl had obviously been paid to lead me here…but by whom and for what reason was the real question.

Ever since Penny had been hounding me on 'becoming one with Hulk' I had been getting better control…although there was no quelling the wild rage that was always just beneath the surface.

Penny's many hours hadn't been wasted through, as I now could change on command…and at times Hulk and I could even have mental conversations.

They were mostly one sided though, with me talking and Hulk grunting and sending wild emotions back.

"You know," a smooth female voice said, and I turned to see a red head, with a haircut very similar to Penny's step out of the shadows. "For a man who's supposed to be avoiding stress you choose…a hell of a place to settle."

She was dressed simply, like someone trying to blend in, but she was obviously American…though I wasn't sure by birth or not.

"But, avoiding stress isn't the secret," I told her as I set my bag down onto the ground.

"Then what is? Yoga?" she asked, and I couldn't tell if she was serious or being sarcastic.

I just smiled at her and leaned back against the wall. "What is a secret, if it doesn't stay a secret?"

Well, let the game begin.

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**First official chapter done! **

**A bit of Pen and Bruce…a good thing, right? **

**I bet you all can guess what it is that Pen felt right?**

**Anyway, things are rolling, and thanks to everyone who's fav. Followed, and reviewed in the past 24 hours…it's kept me smiling nonstop.**

**Thanks,  
Cp**

**Oh, and if the chapter title says unbeta'd in parenthesis, it's because it hasn't been beta'd yet!**


	3. This Could Be Fun(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**THE ONLY THING I OWN IS AN IRON MAN III POSTER FROM WALMART…that's bent… so leave me alone!**

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Still Bruce's POV

Penny and I both knew that someone would find me eventually, but she said that she was keeping tabs on people who wanted to harm me…like General Ross.

Penny had also mentioned that an organization called SHIELD was also keeping tabs on me, and she hadn't determined if their intentions were good or not…yet.

I had a feeling that this woman worked for the intentions unknown organization that Penny spoke about.

I watched her watch me carefully and said, keeping her gaze, "So, you brought me to the edge of the city… a good call I suppose when you want to be left alone…I guess that I can assume the whole place is surrounded?"

I glanced at the thin walls and windows, half expecting people with large guns in SWAT uniforms to burst into the shack at any moment.

I stiffened slightly as Hulk growled warningly in the back of my mind, ready at a moment's notice to take over if need be.

"_Calm down Big Guy…she isn't a threat…yet…" _I told him and he sent me a mixture of emotions that basically said, 'we'll see'.

"It's just you and me." She said and I rolled my eyes. I believed that as much as I believed that Penny was normal.

But hey, what was normal anyway?

"So, is your little actress buddy a spy too? Do you guys even recruit that young?" I asked, testing the waters and waiting for the agent to make the first move.

Spending time with Penny had done wonders for my self-esteem …as well as my self-fear…though it wasn't gone completely.

"I did though SHIELD didn't have a hand in it." She stated and I saw her jaw clench.

So, kid wasn't a spy in training…just some girl who they paid off most likely.

"So you say." I muttered under my breath, but loud enough for her to hear me.

"Are you going to introduce yourself or…" I asked after a moment, glancing at her purposefully.

I heard Hulk snort in the back of my mind and mentally smirked.

I was handling this quite well if I did say so myself.

"Natasha Romanoff." She replied simply and I stood up straighter and stopped leaning on the wall.

Penny had complained about a Natasha Romanoff who had been spying on her and her family (she wouldn't give me names…) a few months back. Chances were, this was the exactly same woman…well at least I knew which agency I was talking to now.

"Is that supposed to mean something? Or are you just here to kill me Ms. Romanoff?" I asked her folding my hand behind my back, attempting to look less threatening.

When she didn't answer I decided to try a different tactic and laughed dryly.

"Because I've tried that, and trust me, it's not going to work." I told her, and that definitely got a response out of her.

"No… no… of course not." Her voice became slightly softer and I wondered if the lack of emotion was intentional, a habit, or if she had just been trained that way.

I figured it was a mixture of the later two.

"I'm here on behalf of SHIELD." She told me and I sighed, did she expect me to know what that was? Well, I did, but I wasn't about to tell her that.

"SHIELD hmm, and can I ask just how is it that you found me?" I asked, wondering if they had managed to track my Gama Radiation levels that Hulk emitted.

"We never lost you Dr. Banner." Romanoff stated. "We kept our distance and even kept some other interested parties off your scent."

"Hmm, is there a reason behind your actions, or am I just supposed to believe you did it all out of the goodness of your heart." I asked her, my words dripping with sarcasm.

It seemed that Penny had rubbed off on me.

Hulk chuckled at my words, and though he couldn't understand them completely, he definitely understood the emotions behind them.

"Nick Fury seems to trust you." Romanoff stated and my lips twitched.

I wasn't naïve. Penny had told me about the SHIELD Director, and he was anything but trusting. I most likely was a convenient tool, something that he had decided to call upon now that he needed me.

"But now we needed you to come in." She said and I snorted, just like I thought.

I stuck my hand in my pocket and fingered the small panic button that Penny had created for me if I was ever in a tight spot and needed a quick getaway… I wasn't sure if it was needed…I sure hoped that it wouldn't come to that.

"And let's just say," I said taking a few steps forward, "that I say no. Then what happens?"

A small smile appeared on the cold redheads face and she looked amused as she said, "I'll persuade you."

I nodded slightly; I wanted to see just how truthful these guys were being before I did anything.

I knew that the whole shack was surrounded, hell, since I had started working…together…with Hulk, my senses have improved, I could hear them not even four feet away from the walls.

"What if the Big Guy says no?" I asked, watching her closely for her reaction. Her answer would be the decision maker, on whether I pressed the button, or went with them.

"You've gone more than a year without an incident; I don't think you want to break that streak." She said walked towards the other side of the room.

I snorted and Hulk chuckled.

"_Just shows what they know, huh Big Guy?"_ I thought to him and strong emotions of agreement and amusement was his answer, along with a snort.

She didn't really say what they would do if Hulk got out, she had avoided it skillfully, I had to give her points for that.

"As far as you know." I nodded and then added, "But thing rarely turn out the way I want them, do they? Otherwise, I wouldn't be standing here, speaking with you."

We were playing a little game, and all three of us knew it…though she didn't know about the third person playing, or the influence of the forth.

"Doctor, we're facing a potential global catastrophe." Natasha said, pulling out her phone and typing away.

I chuckled and sighed, "Well, you know those I like to strongly avoid. Aren't in the protocols for a 'stress free life' as you said."

"This," Romanoff stated, deciding that she was going to ignore half of my comments, showing me a picture of a glowing blue sphere on her phone. "Is the Tesseract."

She placed the phone on a small table and slid it towards me. Raising an eyebrow at the fact that she didn't just hand it to me, I picked up the small cellular device and looked at the picture in curiosity.

What did this have to do with me?

"It has the potential energy to wipe out the planet." She stated as I pulled out my glasses and slid them back on. I had taken them of while chancing the child, wearing them outside usually led to them getting broken.

"And this has what to do with me exactly? What does Fury expect me to do, get the Big Guy to swallow it?" I asked sarcastically and Hulk snorted again and I got the feeling he was saying 'as if'.

"He wants you to find it Dr. Banner, it's been taken." She said calmly and leaned towards me. "It emits a Gama signature that's too weak for us to trace. There's no one that knows Gama radiation like you do. If there was, that's where I'd be."

"Obviously." I drawled, look where my Gamma expertise landed me?

Hulk growled and I was quick to placate him. _"No offence Big Guy." _

"So, Fury isn't after the Big Guy, he just wants me to track down this glowing cube?" I stated wondering how I got into this…oh right, I followed a little girl. I was defiantly putting 'don't follow small children' on my list of things not to do.

"He has no ill intention towards you or the other guy, Dr. Banner." Romanoff informed me and i rolled my eyes.

"And he just tells you everything?" I asked, did she seriously expect me to buy that?

"Talk to Fury, he needs you on this." Romanoff stated heading towards the door.

"He needs me in a cage, or a lab?" I asked, I seriously doubted that if I went with them, I would be able to walk away again.

"No one's going to put you in a cage." Romanoff stated in a monotone, "and the only lab you will be in will be of your own free will."

I sighed, seriously couldn't I just get a straight answer?

"Will you stop lying to me! I can tell when someone's lying!" I snapped as some of Hulks rage flared to the surface provoked by my irritation. I turned and punched the wall to relieve some rage, but obviously this was the wrong thing to do, as Romanoff instantly had a gun pointed at my head; and the wall now had a hole it in...great.

"Sorry," I said, raising my hands above my head and backing up. "I'm fine...obviously not the nicest...or smartest... thing to do."

I sighed when she didn't put her gun down and stated, "I just wanted to see what you'd do; get your gage on the situation, figure out just how much bull shit was coming out of your mouth."

That was partly true…but she didn't need to know that.

Hulk and I were fine.

Hulk snorted and I felt his irritation with the redhead grow as she didn't lower her gun, along with his protective instincts.

"_It's alright Big Guy."_ I told him as I focused trying to get Romanoff put the gun down.

"Why don't we do this the easy way, where you don't use that, the Big Guy doesn't make a mess, and I don't wake up with darts in my back." I said calmly as Hulks anger grew…

She didn't lower her gun and I sighed, "Please? He really doesn't like guns. They make him agitated…well… they make us agitated and agitation is how the smashing usually starts... Natasha?"

This got her looking confused and she lowered her gun. She brought her hand to her ear and said through a com. "Stand down, we're good here."

I had been right. Of course I had, I could hear them breathing.

"Just you and me?" I said, repeating her words from before. "Be glad I didn't believe you."

Hulk snorted in agreement.

"What do you mean, they make us agitated? Your him and he's you...your not to separate people." Natasha asked, and instantly winced, knowing that it wasn't the smartest thing to say.

I smirked knowingly and just replied, "Ah, we are one and the same, Agent Romanoff, yet, we are separate people, within the same body and mind."

At her confused look I continued, "Besides, like I said before what's a secret that doesn't stay a secret? Hmmm?"

I chuckled as she continued to look both irritated and confused. Finally I had broken her mask, mission accomplished.

Now for the next one.

It looked like I didn't need the panic button after all. I was going with them.

But I was still keeping it close at hand, just in case.

"So," I asked with a smile, clapping my hands together, "where do I start?"

Who knows, this could be fun.

* * *

**Not much Penny, but she and part of her (now quite large) family are showing up next chapter.**

**Hope you all are enjoying it.**

**Did you notice that Banner was nowhere near as nervous as he was in the movie? Pen defiantly helped him out, thankfully.**

**I like the guy who played Banner in the movie back in '08 (or whenever that was)…this guy…not so much.**

**Oh well, my Banner's not him, and I like my Banner…and that's what counts…right?**

**Did anyone else find it strange that Romanoff expected Bruce to know what SHIELD was? I mean, aren't they supposed to be secret…for some time…and wasn't Bruce out of touch with the rest of the world for a long time? That just made no sense to me, personally.**

**Thanks to everyone.  
Cp**


	4. Ruined the Moment(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing, if you think I do then Penny shall fry you and Hulk shall smash.**

* * *

Pen's POV

I sighed as I tapped the hologram floating in front of me.

Since my Sister had dropped me off here I hadn't heard a word from any of the Immortals on what the power surge was.

About an hour in, after ranting to both Pepper and Tony about how something was going on but they weren't telling me what, I decided to put away my childish feeling and do some research on my end.

I cast open my wide network of virtual worms and started searching for any resent, strange activity that happened around the same time as the surge, and had some kind of significance.

I was flipping through multiple songs on the many playlists that Mortem had created for me. Apparently, he still didn't trust my tastes in music, so he had created my playlists for me…using a lot of songs that I was pretty sure didn't exist in this world.

I smirked as a particular song came on and turned it up loud. This song fit perfectly with what had happed this morning.

It was what Hel, Insania and I were talking about before we felt it.

A couple of boys had started hitting on us while we were out exploring the shopping part of New York. While we (Hel and I) clearly stated that we weren't interested and tried to leave, they were determined to continue their horrible pickup lines and bad flirting.

Oh how I wish that I could have said seomthing to them like this.

As the lyrics started I couldn't help but sing long, while it wasn't my favorite song, imagining what the idiotic teens would have done if we had sung this was enough for me to keep it on.

_Why am I always HIT ON BY THE BOYS I NEVER LIKE?  
I can always SEE 'EM coming from the left and from the right_

_I DON'T wanna be a priss, I'm JUST trying to be polite,_  
_But it always seems to bite me in the-_

_Ask me for my number, yeah you put me on the spot_  
_You think that we should hookup, but I think that we should not_

_You had me at hello, THEN you opened up your mouth_  
_And THAT IS when it started going south_  
_OH!_

_Get your hands off my hips_  
_Or I'LL punch you in the lips_  
_Stop your STARIN' at my (Hey!)_  
_Take a hint, take a hint_  
_No you CAN'T buy me a drink_  
_Let me tell you what I think_  
_I think you could use a mint_  
_Take a hint, take a hint_  
_T-take a hint, take a hint_

_I guess you still DON'T get it, so let's take it from the top_  
_You ASKED me what my sign is, and I told you it was stop_  
_And If I had a dime for every name THAT you just dropped_  
_You'd be here and I'd be on a YACHT_  
_oh!_

_Get your hands off my hips_  
_OR I'LL PUNCH YOU in the lips_  
_Stop your STARIN' at my (hey!)_  
_Take a hint, take a hint_  
_No you CAN'T buy me a drink_  
_Let me tell you what I think_  
_I think you could use a mint_  
_Take a hint, take a hint_  
_T-take a hint, take a hint_

_What about "NO" don't you get?_  
_So go and tell your friends_  
_I'm not really interested_

_IT'S about time THAT YOU'RE leaving_  
_I'M gonna count to three and_  
_Open my eyes and you'll be gone_

_One, get your hands of my-_  
_Two, or I'll punch you in the-_  
_Three, stop your STARIN' at my- (hey!)_  
_TAKE a hint, take a hint_

_I AM not your missing link_  
_Let me tell you what I think_  
_I think you COULD use a mint_  
_Take a hint, take a hint_  
_TAKE A HINT, TAKE A HINT_  
_Whoa!_  
_Get your hands off my hips_  
_Or I'LL punch you in the lips_  
_Stop your STARIN' at my (hey!)_  
_Take a hint, take a hint_  
_T-Take a hint, take a hint_

"Do I even want to ask why you're singing that song? I didn't think that you usually liked that kind of stuff." I jumped as I heard Dad's voice through the com.

Dad was currently disconnecting the Tower from the grid. There was two lines he had to cut, one underground…and the other under water.

I was worried about the underwater part.

"Dad!" I exclaimed, he had promised to call me as soon as he finished the first one.

"Yeah, it's me." He drawled and I could hear the laugh in his voice.

I rolled my eyes and smirked, only him.

"It just seemed to fit the moment." I commented smirking as I remembered Hel decking one of the boys.

"How does that song…you know, I really shouldn't ask for the sake of my sanity." Tony started to ask before deciding against it.

"Best not." I agreed with a laugh, "but don't worry. I can take care of myself."

I heard Tony chuckle. "Oh, I know you can Pen, not to mention your terrifying friends."

"Yup." I commented, bitting my lip to keep my from ending up on the floor from laughing so hard as I remembered Hel's reaction.

Okay, so these four boys who had decided that it was fun to flirt with us had been idiots. They first had started with crude humor with Hel, then started comparing us with idiotic things like toasters and ovens. Then, when we had told them to shove it and walked away…they insulted Insania who had said, "Are they really monkeys, or do they just have naturally small brains?"

That had been the last straw. Since we had started going out in public, we had had to deal with a fair amount of boys…

But these guys had gone too far.

Two minutes later, all four teens had black eyes, red slap marks on their faces, their hair stood on end from electrocution (light, of course) and had 'we are hormonal idiots' written in Sharpie across their foreheads.

I pulled my thoughts out of the morning's happenings as I asked my Dad, "How're you doing?"

"It's going fine Pen." Tony stated, though I swore I heard a slight quiver in his voice. "Almost done."

My eyes narrowed slightly and I responded, "I wasn't asking how it was going, I asked how you are doing. Considering our mutual issue with water…" I trailed off, knowing that Dad knew what I meant.

I heard Dad sigh and say, "I'm fine Pen…as long as I pretend that I'm actually just in the sky and not under a hundred feet of water…"

Dad trailed off and I heard him gulp as he pushed the thoughts away.

I sighed and shook my head. Pepper and I (Pepper had seen firsthand how bad our flashbacks can be a few months before) had tried to convince Dad not to go down, even in the suit, and to just have someone else disconnect it.

He was stubborn and refused to let anyone else do any of the important work that he could do…regarding the Arc tech anyway.

"There." I heard him say with a smirk, I just knew he was smirking. "All done."

"Good," I stated as my eyes widened as my worm network finally got some results that looked plausible. "Get home, I think I might have found something."

"I'm on my way Pen." Dad replied, and judging from the fact that his voice was no longer slightly muffled, I assumed that he was out of the water and back into the air.

"Pepper, we're good to go on my end." Dad stated I had forgotten that the com link was also open to Pepper.

"You got the transmission lines disconnected; does that mean we're off the grid?" Pepper asked trough the com and I stood up with a smirk and after shrinking down the hologram, exited my room.

As I traveled through the upper hallways I hummed a soft tune and listened to the 'adults' talk. Even though we could have a major problem on our hands…I couldn't help but be in a good mood.

I think it was one of those Immortal side effect things.

"Yes it does. Stark Tower is officially about to become a bright beacon of self-sustaining clean energy." Dad stated.

"Emphasis on bright." I added, I hadn't agreed at first with putting our name on the side of the tower, but Tony, and surprisingly Pepper had eventually convinced me otherwise.

Apparently, it was good advertising.

"That is assuming that the Arc Reactor will take over and nothing will blow up." Pepper drawled, though I knew she was mostly teasing her boyfriend.

"Pepper, I'm surprised that you don't trust me." Tony mocked gasped and I chuckled at their antics.

"Trusting you? Now their's a thought." Pepper stated and I rolled my eyes.

"Alright kids, get along." I stated as I walked into the living room where Dad's landing pad was. "Besides, if you don't trust him, you should at least trust me. I helped after all."

Here was where I was waiting, and so was Pepper.

The redhead shot me an amused glance as she looked away from the holographic screen in front of her.

"Hey! That's not fair! aren't I the parent here?" Tony asked us.

"Depends on the mood." I stated as I popped down onto the couch.

I really needed to let them know what was going on, but I wasn't about to ruin the moment. We had all been working towards this for a while.

"Oh, whatever." Tony dismissed, "light her up!"

Suddenly, the tower spun to light around us. Before, we had been running on minimal power, and had been for the last twenty-four hours.

I smiled widely as I felt the energy surge beneath our feet, oh, I loved all of the energy in the air.

"How does it look?" Pepper asked as she looked around the room, and checked Jarvis' scans to make sure everything was running.

"Like a bright blue Christmas tree…but with more me." Tony stated happily.

"And me." I added I had played a big part in all of this as well.

"Of course, it's our name on the building." Tony exclaimed, happy that his side project was a success.

"The board wants us to go bigger on the public awareness campaign. They're trying to schedule more press." Pepper reported before collapsing onto the couch.

"I'm going to be in DC tomorrow Tony." She stated as I started pulling up the files that my worm network had found. I knew that Dad would be back any minuet.

"What're you doing there again, remind me?" Tony asked as I saw him swerve around a building, approaching at great speed.

"I'm working on the zoning for the next three buildings." Pepper reported. I didn't completely get why we needed so many towers, but hey, I was going to let them take care of that.

I just wanted to be the kid for once.

"Ah, right now, let's just enjoy the moment." Tony stated, not wanting to think about the paper work and press they were going to have to do.

"I thought we were having a moment?" Pepper asked, confused.

"We are." I stated as Tony touched down on the pad and the updated systems started removing pieces while he walked.

Dad had been thrilled when we finally figured that out.

"Dad," I stated walking up to him before the helmet had even been removed. "We have a problem."

I had totally just killed the moment.

* * *

**Sorry for this chapter being late, I had homework and only got home a few hours ago…and this chapter wasn't written before then…**

**Yeah, so, more Pen, and Tony, and a bit of Pepper. We really jump into things next chapter, and I hope you all are enjoying this.**

**Thanks to everyone, new and old. You all make me feel so special.**

**My sister (who I haven't seen in a while and miss a lot ) loves that song…it was stuck in my head and personally…I can see Pen doing that to a guy.**

**Then I imagined what Mortem would do to any boy and burst out giggling in the middle of class…thankfully no one noticed.**

**No one ever notices me.**

**Thanks again for everything!  
Cp**


	5. According to Plan(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own anything. If you say I do I shall lock you in hell. Then Insiania, Hel and I will laugh at you for eternity.**

* * *

"What do you mean, we have a problem?" Dad asked as his helmet was removed and he stepped out of the armor.

I sighed and waved him inside while pulling all of the holograms in front of my father.

"About two, almost three hours ago, there was a massive energetic surge that I felt walk out with Hel and Insania…" I started and Dad nodded, sitting down on the couch.

"Yeah, you told me this as soon as you got home." Tony said, though his face winced…I hadn't told him… I had ranted a bit.

"Yes, but after I was…finished…and calmed down…I decided to see if I could find the sourse of the surge." I stated and Pepper butted in.

"Let me guess, you found it." She stated with a smile, she hadn't approved of my hacking in the beginning…or at all really, but she tried not to dwell on it.

"It wasn't that hard." I shrugged and pulled up the SHIELD file. "However, it was where I found it that surpassed me…though it shouldn't have."

I shook my head as Dad and Pepper quickly read the energy reports as well as the reports of the collapse and destruction of the SHIELD testing facility.

"What does this have to do with the surge you felt?" Pepper asked while Tony stared at the hologram with a determined look on his face.

He started flipping through the holograms that were miniaturized behind them, his faced darkened as he recognized a word.

"Tesseract." He hissed, his father had talked about the cube while searching for the missing Caption America. He really didn't like that connection.

"Yeah…apparently, that was what SHIELD pulled Dr. Selvig for a few months back. It was a wormhole from the Tesseract that I felt earlier." I sighed and closed my eyes as Tony flipped through SHIELD's files with a new found fury. "That's not even the worse part."

"What could be worse than SHIELD messing with alien tech they don't understand and collapsing a building after creating an unstable wormhole?" Pepper asked, she had been reading behind Tony's shoulder, and over the years she had learned a thing or two about quick reading.

I turned to look at her gravely and said, "SHIELD didn't make the wormhole…someone else activated it from the other side…and someone came through."

Pepper winced and Tony's glare deepened, obviously, our holiday was thrown out the window.

"Who knows, maybe who ever came through is nice?" Pepper stated hopefully.

"He's not."

We all turned around to see Phil stepping out of the elevator. He had a code that would let him in whenever he wanted, but Jarvis was _supposed _to tell us first.

"Jarvis." Tony glared at his lack of warning, and pulled down all of the SHIELD files.

"Sorry sir, but he asked that I didn't interrupt you." Jarvis stated, his accented voice echoing through the room.

"Phil!" I cheered, and gave the agent a brief hug.

"Pen, come on, I've told you. His name is Agent." Tony smirked as he shook his hand. Coulson was about the only one in SHIELD that Dad could stand…and didn't constantly annoy.

That was probably why Phil was assigned him.

But hey, I never said that it was a bad thing.

"It's good to see you Pen." Phil stated, he hadn't been over in about a week and a half…work and such. "Too bad it couldn't be on better terms."

"So, what's up? Consulting hours are on Thursday." Tony stated as Pepper came and stood next to him.

"I'm afraid that this is a beyond that." Coulson stated as he handed a black data-pad. "We need you to look this over as soon as possible…but I have a feeling that you've already see most of it."

Tony eyed the folder before eyeing Coulson, and I rolled my eyes. I thought that Phil had figured it out by now…

"I don't like being handed things…" Tony stated with a glance as Pepper reached out and took it.

"But I love to, so don't worry, its fine." She stated glancing at her boyfriend.

I wasn't sure if Tony had told Pepper the real reason for him not liking to be handed things…but either way, Pepper still didn't like it.

"So, is this about the Avengers?" Pepper asked and at Phil's look, backpedaled.

"Which…I know…absolutely nothing about…" Pepper stated nervously.

"What's up Phil, why are you really here?" I asked drawing the attention back to me.

"Yeah, cause the last I heard, the Avengers Initiative was scrapped." Tony commented as he turned away to load the info into Jarvis' system so we could get a hologram of it.

"This isn't about the Avengers." Coulson stated shaking his head.

I didn't believe that but hey… "So, why does a research facility collapsing because of un unstable wormhole created by the Tesseract have to do with us?" I decided that being blunt was my best bet for answers at this moment.

Phil sighed and after a brief look of surprised said, "You know, I'm not even surprised…"

"What is all of this?" Pepper asked, I turned to find that she had moved to be next to Tony as he threw all of the files on the data-pad into the air.

My face paled as I saw them, there was every personal file on Bruce, Thor, and even Caption America.

Crap…they had found him!

"Those, Pepper, are the people that SHIELD is counting on." I stated as Phil and I walked over.

Pepper sighed and said, "I think I'm going to take that flight to DC tonight…you two have lots of homework."

"Actually," Tony stated as he started filtering through everything that we already knew. "It's not that much."

"But," I added hesitantly….I had a bad feeling about all of this… "Perhaps it would be better if you were in DC….for the time being."

Tony looked at me in surprise and question. I just replied with a shrug and said, "I have a bad feeling about this."

They both nodded and Pepper kissed Tony before walking out of the room dragging Coulson with her.

They had both learned to trust my instincts…we all had.

"Well," I stated as Dad stared at the hologram of the Tesseract, "Let's get to work."

* * *

About a half an hour later, when we were discussing how SHIELD's idiocy was something we now had to deal with, Mortem showed up looked tired, and disgruntled.

"Mortem?" I asked as I froze in the middle of my sentence. "What happened?"

"_**Something is coming love…something that the Mortal's aren't ready for."**_ He stated, and I was glad that Dad couldn't understand him. He would've skinned him alive for calling me 'love'.

"What's coming?" I asked, and Dad looked between us in confusion, but he was used to it.

Mortem sighed and shook his head, telling me that he was unable to answer.

"_**She and I may not get along…"**_ Mortem stated slowly as he looked up and met my eyes. _**"But you should listen to your Sister with this."**_

I instantly knew he was talking about Insania, he didn't really like her very much, and I could never figure out why. But I did know that if he said that, then it was something big.

Mortem pecked me on the check, the only thing we dared to do in front of my father, and vanished.

I frowned as I turned back towards my father.

Why did I have such a bad feeling about this?

Also, why did I think that Loki wasn't working alone?

Fati had something to do with it. I just knew it.

* * *

Another Realm

The purple eyed child smirked as she watched her latest pawn continue on its path. Oh, things had become so much more fun since Aequivalere had been taken out of the picture. Sure, she was still a thorn in her side, but she no longer had the power over her realm as she once did.

That alone gave the manipulative Immortal significant amount of control over the youngest's Realm.

Not to mention, that she now had the other young Immortal on her side.

Chaos had been easy to convice to aid her. All it took was the promis of a lot of chaos and she agreed.

Fati still didn't understand what caused her Sister to change her name. True, her mind was now more fractured then it had been before, but she still didn't understand it.

She didn't like things she couldn't understand.

Oh well, she smirked as she watched the silly Mortal with Daddy issues play right into her hands.

Everything was going according to plan.

* * *

Another part of the Realm, unseen

A silver and blue haired Immortal smirked as she saw her Sisters movements. Sure, her mind was chaotic and unstable, she knew that, and she also knew that it was worse when she was in her Mortal Form (the form she used when she visited Aequivalere) but, that didn't mean she knew nothing of what was going on.

In fact, out of all of her siblings…including Infinitas, she knew the most about what was going on, after all, she had planned it.

She snickered at Fati's naivety. She honestly thought that she was working for her? Hah, a if she would help that spoiled brat.

Even so, she couldn't help but sigh, even though everything was going according to plan, the new development would throw things off a bit…hopefully not too much.

Otherwise, she might never get her Sister back.

* * *

**Hoped you liked it…again sorry about getting it up so late. Homework stinks…**

**Anyway, things are rolling in both the Mortal and Immortal realms.**

**Thanks to everyone,  
I'd thank my Beta's but they're still editing The Unknown Variable…so…  
Cp**


	6. Just Great(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**If you continue to claim that I own anything, when I do not, Tony will drop you into an active volcano. I joke not. He owes me for making him a father *evil grin***

* * *

Bruce's POV

I was completely and utterly lost. I had only gotten to the aircraft carrier a few minutes ago...well, about a half an hour, and I was completely lost.

Romanoff had been called off someplace else, and with all of the military like personal walking around, not to mention the gun and planes, it was making Hulk really uncomfortable.

"It's okay Big Guy," I tried to reassure and calm him. "Everything is going to be alright..."

Hulk growled in response but otherwise calmed down a bit. Neither of us liked this situation.

I was literally just wandering in circles, trying to get some idea of where I was going.

"Dr. Banner!" I heard someone call, and I turn around and calmed slightly at the sight of Romanoff and who I knew was Steve Rogers...AKA Caption America. Once I let a couple of pilots pass in front of me, I wandered towards the agent and captain.

"Hello, they told me that you would be here." I stated as we shook hands, Romanoff watching the interaction silently.

"The word is that you can find the cube." the Caption said with a small smile.

"Not the only word about me, I bet." I stated and the captain shook his head.

"The only word that I care about." He informed me, and I hummed but otherwise reserved judgment. We would see how open he was when Hulk got loose; and we all knew that he would sooner or later.

"This all must be very strange to you." I continued after a moment, gesturing to the tech around us.

"Well, actually this is all kind of familiar." Rogers stated as we watched a platoon jog by. Ah, the wonders of the military...they rarely change.

"Well, I'm glad that you have that at least." I commented, not sure what else to say. What do you say to a hero who has been frozen for the last seventy years? Penny would know.

"Gentlemen," Romanoff stated coming up between us. "You might want to head inside. It's going to get a little hard to breathe in a moment."

All of the sudden an alarm or something blared that instantly irritated Hulk, as I sent soothing vibes to him I looked around trying to figure out what was going on...it wasn't that hard.

"Is this a submarine?" Rogers asked and I almost couldn't stop myself from snorting a bit. I doubted that SHIELD would hide in water...it just didn't seem like them. But hey, what did I know?

"Do you guys really want me in a pressurized, submerged, metal container? That's just a recipe for disaster." I rolled my eyes, trying to make this seem like less of a deal then it actually was.

"I don't think so." I tacked on at the end. Something was telling me that we weren't sinking.

The captain and I walked over to the edge and I raised my eyebrow in impression. Whatever the whirling noise was that just started, it was definitely churning up the water big time down there...wait...could it be engines or turbines?

After a moment of thought I concluded that it probably was, and I was proven corrected when the tops of the turbine broke through the water.

Soon, we were being lifted into the air, and Rogers took a step back against the wind while I just stood there with my hands in my pockets.

"I was wrong...this even an even worse idea...much, much worse." I stated as I turned to Romanoff.

"Did I mention that Hulk hates heights?" I commented and her incredulous look was my answer. Great, just great.

* * *

We were quickly led inside before the Helicarrier (as Romanoff informed us it was called) got too high. We were shown a few hallways, and where the cafeteria was before being brought into the bridge. Even I had to admit that it was impressive. There were about forty agents in the giant room, two different decks, and a large glass wall that let us look out into the clouds.

Penny would love this.

"We're at level sir." one of the agents told Fury who was standing amongst a ring of screens looking down over his workers.

"Good, lets vanish Hill" Fury stated as he tapped the screen besides him and then watched his people work.

The woman who I assumed was Agent Hill, who Romanoff had told me of on the way here when she explained about SHIELD a bit more, nodded to her boss.

"Engage retro reflection panels." She called and instantly a heard a hum move through the ship, and assumed that they had been activated.

Once another agent said, "Reflection panels engaged," Fury turned around to face us. We had situated ourselves behind him, around what appeared to be a glass conference table. What that was doing on the bridge I had no clue.

"Gentlemen." Fury stated with a nod. Rogers walked up to Fury, and instead of shaking his hand like I expected to, he handed him ten bucks.

Huh, I wondered what the two betted about...the captain's surprise perhaps? He certainly did seem a bit out of it.

As the captain wondered off around the bridge Fury, who I had never met before, approached me and shook my hand.

"Doctor, thank you for coming." The one eyed, black clad man said.

After a half a second, while I tried to calm a panicking Big Guy down, I returned his hand shake and replied, "I appreciate you asking nicely. So, how long am I going to be here?"

Hulk growled as a bird crashed into the Helicarrier's large window with a thump. That had just reminded him that we were no longer on the ground.

"_It's alright Big Guy...we're safe...well sorta...but it's not going to fall out of the sky."_ I tried to reassure him but it did little to calm his nerves.

"Once we get our hands on the Tesseract you're in the wind. Free to go." Fury stated, and I realized just how worn out he looked...well I bet that it hadn't been the best past few hours.

"So," I stated deciding that I better get to work. "How's that coming along?"

"We're sweeping every wireless accessible camera on the planet. Cell phones, laptops...if it's connected to a satellite, its eyes and ears for us." Coulson commented proudly before adding, "Well, except for Stark's stuff."

I nodded, from what I had heard about the man, he was a genius not to mention what he did while flying around in that suit of his.

"Is he getting invited to this little party?" I asked raising an eyebrow at the director. All three agents just looked at each other before returning to the conversion.

"Stark's a bit...of a wild card." Romanoff finally stated before sighing and continuing. "We won't be able to find them in time."

"Just narrow down your search." I stated with a shrug. "How many of the spectrometers so you have access to?"

I aimed my question towards Fury and replied with, "How many are there?"

"Well then call every lab you know. Tell them to put the spectrometers on the roof and calibrate them for Gamma rays. I'll get you a tracking algorithm...it's just basic cluster recognition it shouldn't take me very long to complete." I stated as I look off my jacket and glanced back towards Fury.

"Do you have a place for me to work? Preferably a place without windows? The Big Guy doesn't like heights." I asked, and explained the reasoning.

Fury nodded and turned towards his redhead agent, "Agent Romanoff, will you show Dr. Banner to his laboratory? He will be working out of Lab three."

Romanoff nodded and instantly waved me to follow her. "You'll love it Doc, we've got al the toys."

I nodded, but before I could take a step, my slightly advanced hearing picked up something I didn't expect.

"Oh, not all of them."

I swore I had heard Pen's voice. As I snapped out of my shock and followed the assassin, I decided that I had just imagined my friend's voice.

That was until I saw, out of the corner of my eye, a swirl of sparks that appeared for a moment before vanishing.

Penny was defiantly here...the only thing that was confusing me, wasn't the how, it was the why.

* * *

Twenty minutes before  
Pen's POV

"Dad" I said as I looked up from my position on the couch. I already knew most of the info that was in the files, though Dad wasn't as familiar with it so he was still going over all of it.

"Yeah Pen?" He replied though he didn't look up from the hologram.

"I really want to go check on Bruce. I mean, we've known that SHIELD has been keeping an eye on him, but I'm just worried about how they'll approach him...and how Hulk'll react. If anything happens..."

I was starting to ramble, and Dad, seeing my distress was quick to step in and interrupt.

"You can go check on him Pen...just keep your com. in and on." He said, stating his only conditions.

"Thanks Dad!" I exclaimed as I jumped to my feet and look out my ear buds. I had been extremely bored for the last...three or so hours. I was ready to do something.

I was dressed in all black and blue today, with a bit of green. Black jeans, blue long sleeve shirt, my silver boots, and my green headband.

I popped the small, practically undetectable com. into my ear as I gave Dad a hug. "I won't be long." I said as he kissed my forehead.

"Just keep me up to date, I'm almost done here and your programs along with Jarvis are monitoring SHIELD. I'll let you know if anything happens." Dad stated with a smile.

"Same here." I replied as I stepped back and charged up my sparks. With my new way of transporting, I no longer have to go outside or to a metal source in fear of frying something. I just vanished.

* * *

**Hoped you liked this…I wrote it during school…sorry for the late hour again. Life. But I'm still updating daily though!**

**Hope you all are enjoying it. I'm trying to keep things relatively close to the movie but still AU…for a few chapters. *evil grin***

**Things will be fun, you better hang on.**

**Thanks to everyone old and new,  
Cp**


	7. Not our King, Just a Pawn(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing, Disney, who owns Marvel, and JK who owns her own work have all of the claims.**

**I have said this many, many times now…do you believe me yet?**

* * *

I was definitely surprised when I reappeared. I hadn't expected for Bruce already to be in SHIELD's hands.

He seemed well enough, and I followed behind him silently as he and...Rogers...were shown around the Helicarrier.

I followed them closely, invisible and silent, as they walked onto the bridge. As I looked around the deck of the Helicarrier, had had to admit it was impressive.

"How's it going Pen?" Dad asked checking in for the first time.

"Well, it seems that SHIELD is really serious…Bruce is already here, and so's the good old Captain." I reported quietly as I maneuvered through the room.

"Really? Huh, well, I just finished with the files from SHIELD this situation could get really bad really quickly." Tony commented. "I'm tinkering with the suit right now just in case."

"Alright…I'm going to hang out here for a bit. See if there's anything that we haven't been able to access yet." I stated as I watched Bruce get down to business with Fury.

"Where are you?" Tony asked after a moment. I looked around with a smirk, I could cause so much chaos here…I was starting to sound like Insania…great.

"Helicarrier. Not 'hundred percent sure where we are though…." I stated with a shrug.

"No problem, I'll have Jarvis track it down. Just keep in touch Pen…and make sure you don't get caught." Tony stated sternly.

All things would go to hell if I got detected. We didn't need that on top of everything else that was going on right now.

"I won't Dad, promis." I stated with a small smile.

"Love you Pen." Dad said slowly after a moment of silence.

My eyebrows pulled together as I realized that resent developments must really have my father worried.

"I love you too Dad." I said and the com. fell silent.

I shook my head as Romanoff led the doctor off of the bridge.

"You'll love it Doc, we've got all of the toys." She stated with a small smirk.

Bruce nodded in response as I decided to let him know I was here.

I stepped up close behind him and said quietly knowing that he would hear me, "Oh, not all of them."

Bruce looked around quickly, looking confused before following Romanoff.

I backed away from him, but just as he was about to leave the bridge, he turned one last time and I let my sparks flare in my hand just for a moment. Long enough for my friend to see them and connect the dots.

Bruce looked around one last time, before jogging to catch up with Romanoff. With a smirk I set off down the plain hall.

I was going to find an isolated room with a computer…and then sweep through ever single system of SHIELD…who knew what I could find?

* * *

It was only about ten minutes later that it happened, my worm that was already in the system, alerted me that the search they were using to try and find Loki had a 67% match.

"Hmm…" I stated as I opened the window and jumped into the searching program. Not even a moment later, the program started beeping again, this time with a 79% match.

"Dad, they found Loki." I said, reactivating the com. with just a surge of my sparks.

"Where?" Dad asked immediately.

"Stuttgard, Germany. It looks like he's planning on crashing a party." I stated with a scowl…this wasn't normal.

"This sounds fishy to me." I stated after a moment of silence. "Why would he just decide to walk out into the open like this?"

"I don't know," Dad replied, "But I'm going…just in case they need backup."

"Alright…" I replied, "I'll be on standby and monitoring the situation. Keep the com. open and if _anything_ happens I will be there in a sec."

I heard Dad sigh and say, "I don't like it…but alright. I call again as soon as I get in the suit."

"Be careful Dad," I stated as I continued my hacking search.

"Always am." He replied and once again, the com. fell silent.

* * *

"Dad, it looks like Agent Barton, who's been compromised, just broke into a German research facility." I stated as my fingers flew across the keys.

I wasn't just in SHIELD's systems anymore, now I was in every system in the world. I had been monitoring everything that SHIELD had put as 'important' trying to see if I could figure out what the plan was.

"Barton? The arrow dude?" Dad asked as he flew across the ocean.

"Yeah, it seems that Loki coming out in public is a distraction. He's playing a game…and we're walking right into it." I stated as my worm announced that the Caption was only minutes away.

"I have a feeling they're going to need your help Dad…how far out are you?" I asked as I opened up six different satellite feeds, and seven security cameras, all zoomed in on the Germany gala that Asgardian was crashing.

"A few minutes, I'm going as fast as I can. My ETA's about ten minutes." Dad reported.

"Alright, just remember….Loki's the God of Mischief and Lies for a reason. Not to mention he's a very powerful sorcerer. Don't expect this to be easy." I warned him.

As my video feeds loaded, I watched with a grimace as many well-dressed people fled the large building housing the gala.

It wasn't hard to figure out who Loki was…since he was now dressed in his full Asgardian amour, horned helmet and all.

"This is going to get ugly…" I mutter to myself.

A blue blast came from Loki's staff, and flipped over an approaching police cruiser.

My eyes widened as my Soul twisted in pain. My Duties were calling…right into Loki's party.

"Damn." I stated as I quickly shut down the terminal and erased my presence from the system.

My Duties were telling me to get there…and I'd be damned before I ignored them…I didn't even know if I could.

With a sigh I charged up my sparks and vanished…it looked like we all were heading to Germany.

* * *

I reappeared just as multiple Loki's were herding the crowd before him.

They were obviously illusions, but they didn't know that.

"Kneel before me!" Loki ordered as the staff glowed.

My Duties cried out to me as I stared at the staff. Something was going on here….

"I said…kneel!" Loki demanded as all four 'Loki's slammed their staffs into the ground and they glowed bright blue.

"I like your daughter so much better…" I muttered to myself. "Dad, we've got a problem here. How far out are you?"

Slowly, there terrified Mortal's all slowly got to the ground.

"Less than ten…I just told you." Dad said as I heard the suit's power increases.

"Well…do you think you could speed it up? I don't think Mortem'll be happy if Loki causes a massacre." I stated as I glared at the Asgardian.

"Oi!" I yelled, keeping up my invisibility. "Tall dark and horned, what the bloody hell do you think you're doing?!"

Loki and the Mortals' looked around, trying to figure out who had said that.

It only took Loki a moment to realize that it was no one in the crowd, and he and his copies started eyeing the surrounding area.

"I am claiming my birthright." Loki stated coldly.

"This is not your world, Asgardian." I stated my voice filling with power. It echoed across the street, making it seem like I was speaking from everywhere at once. "Your birth right does not lie here."

"Who dares to challenge Loki! I am a God!" He yelled, causing the crowd to flinch back in fear.

I frowned as I studied my friend's father…something just felt…off…about him.

"Who I am matters not." I stated as I slowly, one by one, started teleporting people away. I just charged my sparks and sent them someplace…I never even left.

"Know this, Loki Son of Odin, brother to Thor, and prince of Asgard. This world is not as defenseless as you were led to believe. We are not your people to rule." I stated as three more people disappeared.

Where the hell was SHIELD and Dad?

"Come one dad…" I muttered under my breath as Loki glared in rage.

"This is your natural state!" Loki declared, gesturing to all of the fearful, kneeling people. "It's the unspoken truth of humanity, you all crave subjugation." Loki stated as he started moving through the crowd, trying to figure out where I am.

"How would you know the secrets of humanity? You are not human, you do not understand our ways." I stated sending four more people away.

"I am above you all." Loki stated trying to control his anger while putting his silver tongue to use. "The bright lure of freedom diminishes your life's joy in a mad scramble for power. You are ants, each trying to crawl atop another. You were made to be ruled. You will always kneel." Loki stated with a smirk.

"Your silver tongue is strong, Loki." I admitted. "Your title holds much truth, you are the God of Lies for great cause…but you are ignorant of our world. Your ego blinds you; your pain fuels the darkness that has crept into your soul.

"You are not our King, you have merely become a pawn." I stated, sending even more people away.

Someone noticed that their numbers were slowly falling, but thankfully they stayed silent and still.

"Lies!" Loki hissed, his eyes scanning the downcast gazes of the crowd.

"Surely, the God of Lies can tell when he is being lied to or not? Unless he is just too afraid to face the truth that he has been hiding from this whole time." I said, I had no clue where most of this was coming from.

I wondered if I knew Loki in a past life…it would explain how he seemed so familiar.

"Your whole world will kneel before me!" Loki yelled in anger and the staff glowed blue.

Suddenly, an elderly man in the middle of the crowd stood. With a look of defiance on his face he stated, "Not to men like you."

I had to admire the man's bravery…but also wanted to smack him. There went my plan on protecting the Mortals.

"There are no men like me, human. I am a God." Loki stated trying to strain his anger. I quickly started sending more and more people away, no longer caring if Loki noticed.

"There are always men like you." The man said his voice hard.

"Look to your elder, people...let him be an example of my power." Loki stated as he lowered his staff towards the man.

Loki shot a blast of blue energy from his staff, taking all of anger out on the man.

"Oh no you're not!" I exclaimed and threw up a shield around him.

However, it seemed unnecessary for right then the red, white and blue clad Captain appeared out of nowhere. His body and shield protected the mortal, while his indestructible shield sent the blast right back to its owner.

"Took you guys long enough." I muttered as I charged up my sparks.

A fight was about to break out, and I refused to let there be _any_ casualties.

* * *

**Hey guys…ENTER LOKI!**

**Hehe, anyway, thanks to everyone and I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. **

**I want to say how I'm sorry that I've been uploading the chapters later than usual…homework gets in the way. Though you should be glad, I'm still updating daily!**

**I wonder what'll happen next…*smirk*…well, I know. I bet you all are wondering though…heheh**

**Thanks to everyone again,  
Cp**


	8. Wishful Thinking(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I shall feed you to Loki's army if you say one more time that I own anything!**

* * *

I had to admit, I was glad that the man who may Grandfather loved so much was here.

It meant that I no longer had to deal with Loki…they would be too busy fighting each other to notice everyone vanishing…hopefully.

"You know, the last time that I was in Germany and saw a man standing above everybody else, we ended up disagreeing." The captain said as he approached Loki.

Having successfully distracted everyone, I threw a shield up around half of the crowd, and with a grimace, teleported them all away…a few blocks away.

Now, this, everyone…besides the captain and Loki, noticed. They all froze, wondering if I was helping them or hurting them.

"Sh." I whispered into a panicking child's ear. "I'm gonna get you and everyone else out of here…but you have to be a big boy and be very, very quiet. Can you do that?"

The boy's mother froze, hearing my words, but was soothed as the young boy…who I guessed was about ten, nodded.

"The Soldier." Loki stated with a sneer as he got to his feet. "A man out of time."

I threw up another shield, over another large part of the group, and they all disappeared with a dull flash of light.

"I'm not the one who's out of time." He stated as a SHIELD jet dropped out of the sky.

A large gun appeared out of the base of the jet and pointed at Loki.

I glared at everyone before throwing a large shield around everyone left…and they vanished.

This caught the Captain's and Loki's attention.

"I'll leave you two to work this out on your own." I stated, as I gripped a lamppost to keep myself from falling over.

My head was pounding and my limbs all felt like led….that had taken a lot out of me.

"Who are you!?" the Captain demanded as he glanced around, looking for me.

"A friend." I stated, telling him the same thing I had told so many others. "Just a friend."

I then collapsed against the ground, letting them believe that I was gone.

I needed to rest before heading back to the Helicarrier… otherwise…I had no clue where I would end up.

I decided to just watch the show, and smirked….this might be amusing.

"Drop the weapon and stand down Loki." Romanoff's voice echoed down onto the nearly empty street from the jet.

I rolled my eyes. Did they really expect that to work?

Loki immediately responded by shooting a blast of energy towards the plane, but Romanoff was a good pilot…she was able to dodge easily.

The Captain jumped into action, throwing his shield at Loki, causing it to bounce off his face and return to him.

I chuckled as I saw the look on his face…he didn't expect that.

Within an instant, the Captain as in front of Loki, he punched him in his face before the Asgardian even had time to blink.

I had to admit he was good…even if he caused Howard to ruin Dad's life…and mine by extension.

Loki wasn't idle for long, he responded with his staff, but Steve blocked it. Loki managed to get under his defenses and the cap was thrown across the courtyard.

"That's got to hurt." I said to myself as I yawned.

Steve tried to throw his shield again, but Loki just knocked it aside. Steve then leaped to his feet and charged the Asgardian.

A fist and staff fight soon engaged. My eyes narrowed as I realized that Loki wasn't using his powers…he was fighting like Mortal. Matching Steve's strength, speed, and ability, but wasn't using anything in his arsenal to beat him.

"That's strange…." I mutter to myself thoughtfully, what was Loki's goal here?

Loki got the upper hand and placed his staff on the back of Steve's head and ordered him to kneel.

"Not today!" Steve yelled as he jumped back onto his feet, flipping Loki over in the process before kicking him in the face.

I giggled as the jet repositioned itself and the gun whirled to life, but it was unable to get a lock.

All of the sudden my com came back to life and I heard Tony say, "Agent Romanoff, have you guys missed me?"

Then, the air was filled with ACDC's "Shoot to Thrill" as it was blasted through the Jet's speakers and echoed throughout the block.

"Nice of you to join the party." I stated with a laugh.

The two opponents froze as they looked around for the source of the music in shock.

Dad streaked through the air, and sent Loki flying with a repulsor blast.

Dad landed dramatically in the suit, only feet from where I was resting and where the Captain was now staring in shock.

"Sorry I'm late." Dad said in my ear, "I thought you weren't going to get involved?"

I shrugged, though I knew he couldn't see me. "Someone had to think of the civilians." I stated simply.

"You're alright though?" He asked as he aimed his full arsenal at the Asgardian.

"Yup, I just need to rest for a bit…and some sugar. Sugar sounds nice right now." I stated as I realized that it really did.

Tony chucked before returning his attention back to the matter at hand.

"I dare you to make a move, Reindeer Games…I just dare you." Tony stated, and the suit made his voice cold and hard.

"nice one." I commented as Loki glared at Dad.

The staff had been ripped from his hands as he had flown backwards. Now, it laid on the other side of the courtyard, closest to me.

With a golden glow, the armor faded and Loki put his hands up. Steve came and stood by my father as Loki apparently surrendered.

"That's not part of his MO." I stated with narrowed eyes. "Something's not right."

"You sure it's not 'cause we can kick his butt?" Dad asked me hopefully.

"No…it's not." I said rolling my eyes.

"Aw." He replied with a whine.

"Nice choice." Tony commented as he lowered his arms and all of his weapons disappeared back into his armor. "Too bad… I was _so _looking forward to testing out a few things on you…perhaps next time."

"There won't be a next time Mr. Stark." Rogers said with a glance.

"We'll see, Captain." Tony was barely able to keep the venom out of his voice. It wasn't the captain's fault that Howard had turned into a…drunken little git…but we couldn't help but not like him.

* * *

Very soon, we were all on the jet, heading back towards the Helicarrier…though no one but Dad knew that I had snuck aboard.

By the time that they were ready to leave, I felt well enough to get back by myself, but Dad had practically ordered me to accompany him on the Jet.

He had two excuses to get me there with him, so that he could watch me, and the other unspoken one was that he didn't want to have to deal with the Captain alone.

Also, the reason why I didn't argue with dad was that my Duties were yelling at me to keep Loki in my sigh; and I knew that I would be in a hell of a lot of pain if I ignored them.

As we flew over snowcapped mountains conversation finally started up.

"Is he saying anything?" Fury asked over the open com. The whole jet could hear him, and even if they couldn't, Jarvis was connected to every SHIELD system now…I could pull up the conversation on my com if I wanted to.

"Not a word." Romanoff stated as she flew the jet.

"Just get him here, we're low on time." Fury ordered before the line went dead.

Loki literally hadn't moved, or said a word since Tony shoved him into his seat. Sometimes, I didn't even think his mind was there; and not in the sense that he was brain dead.

"I don't like it." Rogers stated lowly to Dad.

I was actually sitting the closest to Loki, I was pretty sure that he couldn't sense me. But if he could, I was the most qualified person on the jet to deal with him.

"What, the face that old Green Horns gave up so easily?" Dad responded, his voice laced with sarcasm.

"I don't remember it being that easy." Rogers stated grimly. "This guy packs a wallop."

"That's because it's not; though you seem to be doing fairly well considering your age." Tony commented. "What's your secret, Pilates?"

"What?" Rogers asked, completely confused and I snorted quietly, this was funny.

"It's similar to calisthenics." Dad explained with an eye roll and a sigh. "You probably missed a couple of things while you were…you know…doing time as a Capsicle. Do you miss the ice?"

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how Tony Stark deals with someone discreetly when he doesn't like them….and it had just begun.

Roger's expression hardened before he came back just as sharp, "Fury didn't tell me that he was calling you in."

I rolled my eyes, like Tony cared about anything SHIELD or its irritate Director had to say.

"Don't expect Fury to tell you everything. There's lot of things that Fury doesn't tell anyone." Dad was still extremely irritated with the Director of SHIELD for withholding information that could have helped us save ourselves.

He had decided to blame Fury for my short 'death'…since I had told him to stop blaming himself.

Thunder crashed above us, and lighting cracked. I could feel the static electricity in the air. A huge wave of electrical power washed over and instantly sat up straighter…there was only one person who felt like that…

Loki also shifted for the first time once he heard the thunder.

"What's the matter, are you scared of a little lightning?" Rogers asked as I quickly told Dad,

"Its most likely his brother." I said quietly.

"I'm not overly fond of what follows." Loki stated, and he actually looked nervous.

"Well I'll let you in on a little secret of mine..." Dad stated, "I love lightning."

A smile spread across my face at his statement. Not only would it confuse anyone, but it was nice…since I was practically lightning myself.

At that moment, something his the roof with a loud thud, causing the jet to shaking.

"It look like Thor's arrived." I stated with a smirk, hoping that no one did anything rash…

Eh, it was wishful thinking.

* * *

**And, enter Thor…well…sorta.**

**I really one have one thing to say...BEING SICK SUCKS! It's just a bloody cold but still...**

**oh well, thanks to everyone, new and old,  
Cp**


	9. As I said(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing, if you think I do then I shall lock you in a closet with Insania and Fati for a month! *evil grin***

* * *

I rolled my eyes as everyone froze, either in shock or fear as the jet shuttered in the air. It wasn't like we were going to fall out of the sky.

Dad slid his helmet back into place and his voice echoed through the com.

"I'm just going to talk to him." It was if he had read my mind.

"Just be careful…Thor's one you don't want to mess with, but he's a good guy." I said glacing up at the ceiling.

"Dully noted." Dad remarked as he opened the cargo hold.

"What on earth are you doing?" Rogers yelled as Thor landed on the platform.

"Hey there…" Tony didn't even get to finish his sentence as Thor struck, sending Tony slidding back a few feet.

I jumped up as Thor flew forward and grabbed his brother before swigging Mjolnir and flying out of the plane.

"Can I beat him up now?" Tony asked as he got to his feet.

"No." I stated shaking my head.

Tony started walking towards the ramp, intent on following the Agardians when the Captain grabbed onto his arm.

"What do you think you're doing? We need a plan!" Rogers yelled over the wind.

"I have one." Dad replied simply. "Thor might be the psycho's bother, but we need him back."

"Wait, you're telling me that it's another Asgardian?" Romanoff stated looked hassled.

"Yup, so, let's go see if we can go talk things out." Dad stated, and I knew he was smirking, as he walked towards the edge.

"Stark! You're not the best people person…" Romanoff started, but Dad and I ignored her as he jumped into the air.

I was quick to follow him, but almost as soon as I was out of the plane, I vanished with a swirl of sparks.

* * *

I reappeared just after the two brothers landed on a rocky peak overlooking a valley.

I grimaced as I saw how Loki slammed into the ground and slid…that had to hurt. I really didn't want to reveal my presence, but I would if things got out of hand.

Loki started chuckling as he slowly sat up, looking very amused.

"Where is the Tesseract?" Thor questioned, staring at his bother in sadness.

"I missed you too, bother." Loki stated as he leaned back again a small rock outcropping.

"Do I look to be in a gaming mood, brother?!" Thor boomed, taking a step towards the smaller god.

"You should be thanking me. With the Bifrost gone, how much dark energy did the Allfather have to muster to conjure you here to your precious Earth?" Loki smirked, very contempt with what he had done.

"There are many ways to cross the Realms, brother." Thor stated, unwilling to give Loki the satisfaction of winning. "But if inquire so, it was young Hel who helped me cross the barrier."

Loki froze at the mention of his daughter, but just sneered at Thor.

I had no idea that Hel helped Thor…I knew that she was fonder of him then most Asgardians. He still tried to see her every now and then. Most of their Realm had just abandoned and shunned her.

Thor dropped Mjolnir to the ground and got in his brother's face. "I thought you dead brother."

"Did you morn?" Loki asked, his face growing blank.

"I just found their location." Dad's voice drifted in through the com.

"I'm down here…can't you give them a few moments? Their sorta having a…family…moment here." I asked him quietly. I hoped that they wouldn't be able to hear me…but I wasn't sure how much better their hearing is compared to humans.

"I'll circle." Dad stated after a moment, "But I can't for long. Apparently, the Capsicle decided that it was a good idea to follow us down."

I groaned…great just great.

"We all did. Our father…" Thor started but Loki cut him off.

"Your father." Loki hissed, bringing his finger up in Thor's face.

"He did tell you of my true parentage, did he not?" Loki stated as he stood up and moved away from his brother.

"We were raised together, we played together, fought together, learned together. Do you remember none of that?" Thor asked, following his brother a bit down the cliff-face.

"I remember a shadow, living in the shade of your greatness. I was always there though it worsened once _he _died." Loki admitted a look of pain on my face. I wondered who he was talking about. "I remember you tossing me into an abyss. I, who was and should be king!"

"There is more to ruling, Loki then just claim." I stated, making my voice echo.

I saw Thor glance around in confusion as Loki's eyebrow twitched. I wondered if Thor recognized my voice…it was a small possibility, but it was still there.

Thor decided to ignore my interruption as he continued, "So you have decided to take the world I love as recompense for your imagined slights? Earth is under my protection Loki!"

"Thor, they are far from imagined." I stated, though I was bewildered at where this was coming from…I wasn't even meaning to talk! "Exaggerated, perhaps, but not imagined; and you are far from the only one protecting Midgard."

"Who are you!?" Loki screamed, extremely frustrated while Thor looked around with a thoughtful look on his face.

"As I have said," I replied softly, my voice like the wind. "I am a friend."

"Friend or not," Loki stated, regaining some composer his words dripping with sarcasm. "You all are doing a marvelous job with that."

"The humans' slaughter each other in droves, while you idly fret. I mean to rule them, as why should I not?" Loki asked of his brother.

"They must learn on their own." I stated, and I had a feeling that my Duties were influencing my responses. "Your people held their hands, as parents do children, millennia ago. Now it their time to strike out on their own, make mistakes, fall down…and learn."

"Besides," I added on after a small moment. "It is not your place, to rule this world."

"You speak with much wisdom." Thor commented, glancing around before focusing back on his brother. "Do you truly think yourself above them?"

"Well, yes." Loki replied simply, looking slightly confused with that question.

"Then you miss the truth of ruling, brother." Thor stated simply, "A throne would suit you ill."

Loki pushed aside his brother in anger, and I shifted closer to the two…just in case.

"I've seen worlds you've never known about! I have grown, Odinson, in my exile." Loki declared, and I felt a shift in the air as my Soul twisted in protest…something changed…something wasn't right.

"I have seen the true power of the Tesseract and when I wield it…" Loki stated but Thor interrupted.

"Who showed you this power?" He demanded, sounding worried for his brother.

"Whomever it was, he is the one pulling your strings Asgardian." I stated, my brain working overtime as my Soul directed my words. "You have been misled, as I said before; you have become a mere pawn in this game."

Loki literally growled while Thor became even more concerned.

"Who is it that controls the 'would be king'?" Thor demanded answers, getting up in his brother's face about it.

"I am a king!" Loki yelled in rage.

"Not here!" Thor rebutted with a growl. "You give up the Tesseract! You give up this poisonous dream. If what has been said is true…since when does my brother allow himself to be a pawn!?"

"Come home, brother." Thor stated solemnly, trying to get through to him.

"Heh," Loki scoffed before smirking, "I don't have it."

"But you know where it is." I pointed out as Mjolnir flew back into Thor's hand.

"Okay, Dad…you might want to intervene now…" I stated unsure if it was completely good idea or not…eh, oh well.

"You need the Cube to bring me home." Loki bosted but Thor brushed aside his comment.

"Hel has offered us safe passage through her Realm back into Asgard…returning home is not the issue." Thor stated as he tried to calm his anger.

"You sure you want me to drop in?" Tony asked, and I faintly saw the suit flying in the overhead clouds.

"Yeah…I think that Loki's pushing Thor's buttons a bit much." I stated with a wince.

"Wait…doesn't that mean that he could be more uncooperative with me?" Dad asked, or deduced.

"Yeah pretty much." I replied with a shrug he couldn't see.

"Where is it!" Thor demanded, raising his hammer in a threatening manner.

"I've sent it off." Loki stated with a smirk. "I know not where."

"You listen well, brother, this shall not…" Thor's statement was interrupted when Dad aproched. However, a bolt of lightning hit him sent him spinning off course and slamming into Thor and sending them both down tumbling over the side.

"Ouch…" I muttered as I saw Loki's amused expression. "Such bad luck."

"I'm listening." Loki stated with a smirk.

"You okay Dad?" I asked as I watched Loki carefully, I threw a shield up around the area so he couldn't leave before vanishing and appearing next to the heap that was Dad and Thor.

They both clambered to their feet and Dad snapped back his faceplate revealing a large bruise on his face.

"Don't touch me again." Thor warned my father, lifting the hammer slightly in readiness.

"It was an accident…got hit with lightning…didn't mean to crash into you." Dad explained.

"But you were following us." Thor stated, not sure whether Dad was a threat or not.

"Yes, but just to talk. Better me then SHIELD." He said simply, and part of me wanted popcorn. This could go many ways…it could be interesting.

"You work for SHIELD?" Thor inquired in confusion.

"Not really, I mean, I've worked with them on occasion, but we don't always see eye to eye." Dad stated with a shrug.

Thor nodded, probably thinking how he didn't agree with everything they did either. *cough*couch*taking Jane's research*couch*couch*

"Loki will come with me and face Asgardian justice." Thor stated, daring Dad to challenge him.

"Look, Thor, buddy…I don't have a problem with that. Don't know how ol' eyepatch will take it but…" Dad stated raising his hand up in a motion of peace.

"You know of me?" Thor asked, slightly confused.

"Yeah…we have a mutual friend. She's told me a lot about you." Dad replied and I chuckled.

If Dad wanted to talk to Thor about me…I didn't care. I trusted Thor, Dad, and Bruce the most, Phil coming up extremely close.

"Who is this, mutual friend?" Thor asked Tony.

"You know her…also has a thing for lightning." Dad stated with a smile.

"You know the Lady Penny?" Thor asked, his eye widening in realization.

"Yup." Tony stated, popping the "p".

"Sir, Captain Rogers is approaching." Jarvis intoned, causing Thor to look around in confusion.

"Is it normal for there to be multiple invisible people around?" He inquired, looking unsertain.

"That's just Jarvis…he's a very smart computer basically." Dad explained.

"Strange." Thor stated still looking confused.

"We just want the Cube." Dad stated with a shrug. "Well, I specifically don't…but you get it."

Thor raised un eyebrow at the abrupt change of topic, but didn't mention anything as Rogers came crashing into the tiny clearing, obviously ready for a fight.

"Huh?" he froze as he saw both of them standing there civilly.

I chuckled at his bamboozled expression.

Oh, that was good.

* * *

**There!**

**I didn't do the fight scene because, it wouldn't make sense since Pen told Tony all about Thor and he's a bit more on the rational side with Pen around. A bit. :) **

**Anyway, still sick, that is why it is so late in posting this…(thank God it was a holiday…)**

***wail* I have to go to school tomorrow! :'( *sob***

**Hope you'll forgive me.**

**I most likely won't be able to post until late (again) tomorrow…Tuesdays are always a bit…busy, for me.**

**So, my apologies in advance.**

**Night people…or morning…or afternoon…or whatever, for whatever time it is where you are.**

**Thanks to everyone.  
Cp**


	10. That Bright Idea(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**If you continue to say that I own anything, then you are more insane then Insania and I feel very bad for you.**

* * *

I had to chuckle as the captain just continued to stand there, a shocked and confused expression on his face.

Thor and Tony looked at each other before looking back at the soldier.

"May I enquire your identity?" Thor asked the stunned man.

"Oh...Captain Steve Roger's at your service." He stated as he finally snapped out of it and stood up.

"I am Thor." Thor stated with a small nod. I chuckled and snorted, oh that was funny.

"Okay, I don't know what your intentions here are…" Rogers stated, trying to say something but Thor interrupted him.

"I am here to put an end to Loki's scheme." He stated simply looking the younger man over.

"Oh...alright then." The captain said after a moment of silence, still looking confused.

He froze, and I had a feeling that either Fury or Romanoff was telling him to say something.

The captain looked nervous for a second before saying slowly. "My superiors would like a sign that you are on our side…so if you would put the hammer down…"

I literally smacked my forehead; SHIELD is a bunch of idiots.

Thor's face contorted with rage as Dad took a step back, "Um, Cap…I don't think that was a good idea…he seems pretty fond of that hammer."

"You want me to put the hammer down?!" Thor raged as he pushed my father aside. Thankfully, nothing really happened…besides the fact the Dad face planted a tree…ouch.

"Hey!" Roger's yelled as Thor lifted the hammer and Roger's lifted his shield.

However, before the two could collide, I stepped forward and threw up my most powerful shield between the two.

Thor's hammer came crashing down on my shield with an explosion of electricity. My shield warped, and bolts flew, but it held. I felt the power of Mjolnir grow, and my Soul gave a powerful surge that left me gasping in pain.

Two bolts of lightning fell from the sky and hit the spot where my shield and the hammer connected. Rogers was thrown back as the electrical storm became too much.

For a moment, power danced, for a moment, we were both equally matched, and for a moment, the world seamed frozen.

Then, power rushed through my limbs as my eyes narrowed. I flung my arms out to the side as with a mighty push, the shield ruptured wildly, sending Thor flying back.

"Now that." I stated coldly, my energy making my voice echoed mysteriously though the trees. "Is enough; all of you…you are all on the same side, so BEHAVE!"

With three groans, they all got to their feet. The captain was the only one who looked completely shocked, Thor looked abashed and Tony…well I couldn't see his face.

"So, are you two going to play nice or is a time-out in order?" Dad asked sarcastically as he rolled his wrist that he had fallen on.

"M'Lady is right; we fight for the same cause. We should stand together, not bicker amongst ourselves." Thor stated as he have a discreet nod to where I was standing.

Part of me was surprised that he knew where I was…the other part, not so much.

I took a shaky breathe as the backlash finally hit me…and my vision started to blur.

"Shoot…" I muttered as I sank to my knees. I took deep breathes and started counting slowly, I didn't need to black out, not here and definitely not now.

"Oh, and whoever gave Roger's that bright idea will have to deal with me." Dad stated coldly before shaking his head.

I could literally see Fury shivering right now. You don't piss off the Starks.

* * *

We loaded Loki and his brother onto the jet and took off. Thor, Romanoff, and Rogers were all surprised that Loki hadn't tried to leave while his brother was distracted.

Dad didn't say anything because he knew I had something to do with it.

I spoke quietly and close to Thor's ear when I told him that I had something to do with it. He practically jumped, but stopped questioning his brother, which made the others look at him in confusion.

It took us about an hour to get back to the Helicarrier…it didn't help that it had moved since we had left.

Thankfully, by the time that we got there, everyone had sorta stopped bickering (Dad was still getting on Rogers nerves…but hey, its Dad what can you do?) and I was feeling a lot better.

I had decided_ not_ to tell Dad about how much that little stunt had drained me. He already knew I was tired and low on energy; he didn't need to know that I wasn't doing to hot either.

Hopefully, Jarvis wouldn't find out and tell him.

After we landed, I headed back to my little computer terminal I had hacked, and checked what had been happening. Not much changed, and I left after only ten minutes. Nothing of importance, everything was boring.

I did however, figure out that there was something called, Faze 2 that was related to the Tesseract, and I had a feeling I knew what it was.

While Dad got out of his suit, and after a twenty person armed guard appeared for Loki, I followed them silently and invisibility down the hall. Just for insurance.

Loki kept his face blank, though I could see a hint of contempt and smugness, until we passed Bruce's lab.

There was a large window out into the hall and the door itself was also glass. Loki turned and smirked at Bruce as we walked by. Bruce, I saw, narrowed his eyes at him but otherwise didn't respond.

* * *

I leaned against a far wall as I saw the guards put Loki in the glass container. It looked like jar of canned food…like tuna or chicken that was being held up by giant metal arms.

It was obvious what the thing was made for, and it left a foul taste in my mouth as I clenched my fists.

If Fury _ever_ tried to put Bruce in there, I would rip him a new one myself.

Hulk wasn't an animal…it as time that _somebody_ realized that!

"Incase it's unclear," Fury stated as he walked over to the control panels. "If you try to escape, if you so much as scratch that glass…"

A retractable floor opened up beneath the container and the wind suction was enough for me to grip onto the wall, and I had my boots on!

"30,000 feet straight down in a steel trap." He stated with a concealed proud smirk on his face. "You get how that works?"

I winced, knowing that it would hurt like _hell_ not matter what you were. Human, Immortal, Asgardian, or something else, that was a recipe for disaster…and pain.

With a few clicks on the screen Fury closed up the floor and turned back towards Loki.

"Ant," he stated gesturing towards Loki, "boot," he gestured towards the control panel.

Loki chuckled and I had to wonder if he was really insane.

"I must say, it's an impressive cage." Loki stated motioning around at the cell. "Not build, I think, for me…oh no."

"It was built for something a lot stronger then you." Fury stated, grabbing Loki's bait…great, just great.

"Oh I've heard." Loki stated with a smirk turning to stare at the security camera. "A mindless beast that makes play that it is still human."

My blood drained from my face as I realized that Bruce was probably watching this. I gritted my teeth and swore that I would deal with Loki myself, sooner or later.

"How desperate are you, that you call on such lost creatures to defend you?" Loki sneered and I snorted, as if.

"How desperate am I?" Fury stated coldly stepping towards Loki with a hard look on his face. "You threatened my world with war. You steal a force you can't hope to control. You talk about peace; you kill because it's fun…and you have taken my people. You have made me very desperate. You might not be glad that you did."

"Ooh…" Loki mocked him with a smirk. "I'm so scared. It burns you to have come so close to having the Tesseract to having the power…unlimited power and for what? A warm light for all mankind to share? Then only to be reminded what real power is."

Loki paused for a moment before leaning in close to the glass and stating coldly, "You have no idea what I am capable of."

Fury smirked lightly and turned away. "Well, just let me know if 'real power' want's a magazine for something. Oh, and you have no idea what _we're_ capable of."

Fury left the room in silence and I narrowed my eyes as I was left alone with the troublesome Asgardian.

"Oh," I whispered to myself. "They may not know Loki…but I do. I know very well."

With that, I turned on my heel and phased through the door (something that my half returned memories taught me) and vanishing. I was going to the Bridge where everyone…but Dad…was waiting.

I was going to make sure Bruce was okay.

And that Dad wasn't going to blow anything up…or Fury….that wouldn't be good.

* * *

**Hi people….I'm really sorry this is posted so late (at night my time) but I was out until six my time and then had three hours' worth of homework and it took me an hour to write this…so…yeah…**

**Anyway, I hope you are enjoying.**

**I must confess, part of me has been sad the last couple of days…not a lot of traffic with the reviews. **

**The other part of me tells myself not to worry about it and stuff…I think that you all got me addicted to a lot of reviews!**

'**Cause if I complain to anyone…they look at me like I'm nuts. Am I? Well, oh well.**

…**.**

**Anyway, thanks to all of you wonderful people!  
Cp**


	11. Already Lost(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing. Jk, Marvel, and Disney own everything...if you would like to sue someone go try to sue them!**

* * *

Bruce's POV

My eyebrow twitched slightly at Loki's words.

"Oh I've heard." He smirked and turned to star right at the camera from which we were watching him. "A mindless beast that makes play that it is still human."

I shorted and rolled my eyes; that just showed how much everyone knows.

"_They're all idiots aren't they Big Guy?"_ I asked him and I heard him rumble in agreement from the back of my mind.

"Except Pen...she's special." I added as an afterthought, and Hulk hummed in agreement, and sent me a mixture of feelings that basically meant 'don't add her to the mix if you do, then you're an idiot.'

In the past few months, Hulk and I really got this mental communication thing down, and we could have...strange...one sides conversations.

"How desperate are you, that you call on such lost creatures to defend you?" The 'god' continued and Thor, who I had found to be quiet a pleasant man, looked at me in concern and Romanoff was eyeing me carefully.

I made a show of smirking and rolling my eyes. Hulk rumbled angrily in the back of my mind, and I instantly soothed him.

"_Don't worry; you'll get your chance at him sooner or later..."_ I promised him. I had a feeling that there was another part of this that we just didn't get...and that Hulk's part would be necessary.

I had to wonder just what Penny was doing here. I had a feeling that she knew more about what was going on than I did (not surprising) but I had no clue what she was planning.

I tuned out the rest of the monolog between Fury and Loki. I did notice, however when all of the SHIELD agents froze when Loki mentioned an 'a warm light for all mankind'. I had a feeling that he was hinting at something, and once this little 'briefing' was over, I was going to sit down and figure it out.

"Well," I said once Fury left the cell room and made his way back here. "He grows on you, doesn't he?" my voice was dripping with sarcasm and Thor looked at me in curiosity, though not confusion.

"Loki's going to drag this out." Rogers stated and I got a weird feeling off the man. I liked him well enough, but there was just something about his energy…personality…something… that made Hulk pay attention to him, so I would pay attention to him as well.

It was also partly amazing to see the man who had been the source of all of my previous research...the same research that made me like this.

"So, Thor," Rogers continued morbidly, "what's his play?"

I rolled my eyes at the military talk, but otherwise ignored it. Roger's was a solider, and I doubt that would ever change.

Thor was looking very contemplative, and didn't look up when he replied, "He has an army called the Chitauri. They're not of Asgaurd nor any known world. I wonder where he discovered them, since things like that are beyond his power. If I had not known better, I would suggest that an Old One was helping him...though that is not possible."

Thor shook his head, and I thought that I saw a flash of sadness cross his face before it became like stone once again.

"It is possible that one of these 'Old Ones' are helping him?" Rogers asked looking at the Asgaurdian in thought. "Or will help us?"

"No, they are rarely seen in our world; and if they are...they are forbidden from intervening like this. They have their own power, their own rules, and their own time for things. The only one who is connected greatly to the Mortal Realm and could help us...hasn't been seen in some time."

"How long is some time?" Rogers asked, cutting off whatever Romanoff was about to say. "A year, two years...how much time are we talking about here?"

Thor turned with an unreadable expression on his face and he said solemnly, "I, nor anyone else has seen him since I was fifteen of your years."

Everyone froze, and looked at Thor in shock. We all knew that he was quiet old, and for this guy...whoever he was...to be gone that long...the chances of him showing up were extremely slim.

"So it has been many, many centuries." Thor stated and started pacing. "While the origins of this army are unknown, he means to lead them against your people. Using the bridge created by the Tesseract to bring them here; and make no doubt. If he is successful, they will win him the earth...I suspect in return for the Tesseract."

"Wait, you're telling me that someone loaned Loki an army...from outer space... so that they can get the Tesseract?" Rogers asked, sitting up straighter in surprise.

"Aye." Thor nodded looking grim.

"So, he's building another portal." I stated, looking between the two blonde men. "If he wants his army to get through, he's going to have to open a much larger wormhole...and to do that he'll need a lot more power...that's why he took Selvig." I sighed with realization.

My brain was spinning with the possibilities while Romanoff watched us slightly amused. I took off my glasses and rubbed my eyes...I had already been working for hours on the tracking program, now what?

"Selvig?" Thor repeated, looking shocked and concerned.

"He's an astrophysicist, one of the best." I stated, hoping to clear that up.

"He's a friend." Thor stated, and I remembered Penny telling me something about them.

"Loki has him under some kind of spell." Romanoff stated simply, talking for the first time since we all entered to bridge. "Along with one of ours."

My eyes narrowed slightly as I saw her stiffen just the slightest at the mention of their missing agent. Hmm, she actually looked concerned, and worried...they must be very close to get a reaction out of her like that.

"I want to know why Loki let us take him. He's not leading an army from that cell." Rogers stated, trying to get this mind back onto things that he could deal with.

"I don't think we should be focusing on Loki..." I stated slowly, being careful with my words considering that his brother was in the room. "Right now...I don't know if any of us will understand what's going on in that brain of his, but I think we have a chance of finding the Tesseract. That should be our first priority."

"He killed 89 people in two days." Romanoff stated with a sour look. "Why shouldn't the psycho be our top priority?"

"Careful of how you speak." Thor stated with narrowed eyes. "He is beyond reason and his sanity is questionable, but he is still of Asgaurd...and he is still my brother."

"I think it's about the mechanics." I stated, trying to get the others back on topic. "Iridium...it's what your agent stole while Loki was keeping you all distracted. What do they need Iridium for anyway?" I wondered aloud.

"It's a stabilizing agent." We all turned to see Coulson and Stark walk into the room.

"I'm just saying, pick a weekend, I'll fly you to Portland." Stark muttered to Agent Coulson before turning his attention back to us.

Coulson rolled his eyes and gave him a discreet nod before walking over to Agent Romanoff.

"It means that the portal won't collapse on itself like it did for SHIELD. Sorry, I'm late...that tree bent the suit a bit out of shape. Didn't want to come off." Tony stated flippantly.

"You have my apologies." Thor stated, nodding at Stark.

Stark turn towards Thor and, surprising everyone, he just patted him on the shoulder and said, "No big deal. I've had worse, but man do I pity anyone who gets on your bad side." he stated with a smirk.

Thor nodded his head in acceptance and gave Tony a small smile.

I had to admit...there was something familiar about that man.

He reminded me of someone a lot.

I wondered if Penny knew how similar she was to her old boss...besides the fact that they both had Arc Reactors in their chests.

I had no clue how close I was.

* * *

Pen's POV

I smiled as I followed Dad and Coulson onto the bridge. Fury had stopped to talk to someone on the way so I just appeared next to Dad and followed him and Coulson...not that they knew that.

Dad was talking to Coulson, trying to get him to go talk to his ex-girlfriend. They had been dating over a year now and she just broke it off because of her job offer and her move.

Tony and Pepper have been completely dedicated on getting the two back together. If anyone ever found that little fact out, they would faint. I mean, who would think that the arrogant Tony Stark and his Ice Girl would play matchmaker with a SHIELD agent and a musician.

I personally want to see Fury's face when he finds out.

I was proud of Dad with how he dealt with Thor, and it was funny to watch everyone's reactions. Romanoff looked shocked and also...blank...I wasn't sure how to describe her expression. Rogers looked shocked, Agent Hill, who was watching everyone, was also shocked. Coulson just looked amused, and Bruce...Bruce has a contemplating expression on his face that also held some recognition.

I needed to be more careful. We really didn't need Bruce figuring things out…well…at least not until things calmed down.

I wouldn't mind telling my friend about my heritage and real identity…since he and Dad will know each other by then anyway.

But first, I would see how this played it.

Loki had become a wild card, I wasn't sure what was going to happen though I knew that no matter what he threw at us…we would hit it right back.

He didn't know what we were capable of.

He did know what _I _was capable of.

That is why he already lost his 'war'.

He just didn't know it yet.

* * *

**You all make me so happy with all of your Reviews….XD thanks to all of you so much!**

**Sorry it's late again, had stuff to do.**

**Hope you're all enjoying it. :) **

**Thanks to everyone,  
Cp**


	12. Tough Crowd and Listeners(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**If I owned a thing, I wouldn't be here. I would be writing books and signing movie contracts.**

* * *

"It also means," Dad continued after everyone had taken a moment to get their baring's back, "that the portal can open as wide, and stay open as long as he wants..."

Dad walked over to the screens and with one swift look over them he scoffed.

"How on earth do you guys work with these?" he rolled his eyes and took three small black cubes out of his pocket. "I'm so glad that I'm always prepared."

Romanoff rolled her eyes at his statement and I could tell that she didn't believe him. Seeing what he was trying to do, I quickly crossed the room to help him.

Dad plugged in two of cubes into the glass monitors on the left, while I, invisibly, connected the other two of the right.

"There!" he said as he stood back up. He clapped his hands and instantly the monitors shut off and the data filled the air in glowing holograms.

"Stark!" Hill snapped and Dad rolled his eyes.

"You said not to touch your data systems. I didn't I just commandeered your monitors. There's a big difference." Tony's voice was filled with mirth and it was obvious he was doing this to mess with them.

"Anyway, are you going to open up the files I want or do you want me to find them?" Dad asked with a smirk.

"She isn't your Secretary." Rogers stated giving Tony a disapproving look.

Dad rolled his eyes and was swift to reply with, "I know that. SHIELD, apparently, isn't fond of me playing hide and seek in their systems. They've given me strict instructions not to mess with their Databases. So, Hill, I'll ask again, do you want me to find them? Or do you?"

Rogers, Romanoff, and Bruce all looked at my father weirdly, though Bruce looked more interested than anything.

I chuckled as Thor stared at my father confused before dismissing whatever he was thinking with a shake of his head.

"Only you Dad." I stated quietly into the com. We both still had one in our ears, and part of me was surprised that SHIELD hadn't found it…the other part of me wasn't.

"You're going to follow that now? We told you that over a month ago when you started hacking our servers!" Hill practically shouted.

Dad only turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow while Rogers started at him in horror. "Do you _want _me to start going through your dirty laundry again?" He asked sarcastically.

"No!" Hill stated as she put her hands on her hips and tried to imitate Pepper…she couldn't pull it off.

"There are no files you need to be viewing right now Mr. Stark." She stated sternly, "Now please remove your equipment."

Dad rolled his eyes and I sighed, SHIELD was no fun.

With a sigh and over dramatic steps, Dad unplugged the hologram plug-ins and plopped down into a chair.

"There, happy?" He asked Hill who just glared at him as her screens were returned to their normal, boring selves.

"How about we get back on topic here?" Bruce suggested and I wanted to hug him. Hill and Dad had only met two other times, and they could fight like cats and dogs for _hours_. I was glad he stepped in.

"Right!" Dad exclaimed as he spun around in the chair away from Hill. "Basically, Barton can get his hands on any other raw materials needed pretty easily. The only thing that he really needs is a high-energy density power source….to kick-start the Cube… give it the boost it needs to really get going."

Dad quickly became bored and took out his holographic Stark Phone, it was the latest model.

"And when did you become an expert in thermonuclear astrophysics?" Hill asked sarcastically, still pretty pissed at my father.

I rolled my eyes and plopped down in an empty chair away from the others. Mortals were idiots sometimes.

"This morning." Dad replied not looking up from his phone, "I mean I've known a bit about it for a while now. The strange, unexplained, and shady side of science have been a hobby of mine in the past year but Selvig's resent stuff really iced the cake…did no one else get the packet?"

"What packet?" Romanoff asked, wondering what he was going on about now.

Dad looked up from his phone with an incredulous look on his face. "Seriously? Selvig's notes the theory papers, all of his data….was I the only one who got that mountainous pile of papers?"

Everyone decided to ignore him.

With a shake of his head, Dad went back to his phone.

"Tough crowd, huh?" I stated lowly into the com.

"Hum." Was Dad's only reply and I knew he felt underappreciated…stupid SHIELD.

"Does Loki need any particular kind of power source?" Rogers asked after a very long and pregnant silence.

Dad didn't bother the man with an answer, but Bruce did, not that I was really surprised.

"The Cube would have to be heated to 120-million Kelvin just to break past the Coulomb barrier." Bruce stated as he sat down in a seat across from my father.

"Finally!" Dad exclaimed as he tossed his phone down and his hands up his attention now on Bruce. "Now, that's only unless Selvig's figured out how to stabilize the quantum tunneling effect."

"Well, if he has the ability to do that then he could achieve heavy iron fusion at practically any reactor on the planet." Bruce said giving Tony a small smile.

"Yes, finally! Someone who actually can speak English! You know, after Piper left I found that intellectual conversations really dropped. I was starting to think that everyone had just lost the ability to speak!" Dad exclaimed with a happy grin as he spun around a few times in the chair.

"Piper?" The Captain asked as Bruce looked thoughtful. I had told him that I went by Piper when I was with Tony…oh well.

When no one bothered answering him, Rogers continued, "Is that what just happened? Because that didn't sound like English to me."

Dad leaned forward across the table and reached out his hand to shake Bruce's. "It's a pleasure to meet you Dr. Banner; I've heard great things about you." He said sincerely with a smile. "I must say, your work on antielectron collisions is unparalleled to anything else I've seen."

Bruce took his hand a shook it, a small smile working its way onto his face.

"Dad, Bruce and Hulk, Bruce, Hulk, Dad." I stated with a smile, and chuckled to myself if only Bruce and Hulk could hear. It would be hilarious.

"Not to mention I'm a huge fan of yourself and your big, green, alter-ego." Dad tacked on as an afterthought.

"Thanks, and I have to say, out of everyone in this mess, you're the only one I haven't met who either isn't cautious or not watching me like a hawk waiting for me to break…well you and the Thunder God, but hey, he's not human." Bruce said with a small smile on his face as he leaned back in his chair. "Not to mention you're also the only one who hasn't called Hulk a monster."

Tony smirked and seemed very glad that he made a friend. It was hard for Dad to make friends, most of the time they ended up being put off by his attitude or his mind…and it ends in disaster.

Not to mention that because of Howard, Dad has major trust issues…Mom leaving didn't help that.

"So, how'd you get roped into this?" Dad asked content with ignoring everyone else in the room.

Before Bruce could even open his mouth to answer Fury walked in with a scowl and said, "Dr. Banner is only here to find the Cube."

My eyebrow twitched and I really wanted to fry that specific Mortal…but I couldn't…which wasn't fun.

"And," Fury said after Ton rolled his eyes at him. "I was hoping that you would join him."

Tony opened his mouth to say something sarcastic most likely, but Rogers had to open his mouth first and cut him off.

"I would start with that sick of his." He said looking at Tony strangely. "It might be 'magical' but it works an awful lot like a HYDRA weapon."

"I don't know about that…" Fury said slowly, "But it is powered by the Cube; and I would like to know how Loki used it to turn two of the sharpest men I know into his personal flying monkeys."

"Monkeys?" Thor questioned, speaking for the first time in a while. "I do not understand, is it a gest?"

Tony opened his mouth; probably about to say something to do with Loki and the Wicked Witch, when Rogers spoke faster…he was doing that a lot.

"I do!" Rogers exclaimed happily causing Banner, Dad and I to roll our eyes. "I understand that reference."

I literally smacked my forehead. Seriously…this guy was getting on my nerves.

"Good," Dad drawled standing up. "I couldn't care less if you didn't and I'm beyond caring if you do. It's all purposeless at this moment; we have much more concerning things on hand right now then memories of the Wicked Witch." Tony said, and I wondered if he had ever had a conversation alone with Insania…because that sounded like something my Sister would say.

"So, Doctor." Tony said as he walked around the table. "Ready to play?"

Bruce smirked, stood, and ignoring the confused expressions replied, "Always am, this way."

Just as the two doctors were about to leave the room Thor broke the confused silence and said, "Was that supposed to be insulting? If it was…it was quiet strange."

Bruce leaned over and muttered something to Tony, causing him to freeze for the briefest of moment before they carried on.

"Huh," I muttered to myself as I left the briefing room and followed Dad. "I wonder what that was about."

Eh, oh well.

It couldn't be _that_ bad.

^*^  
Bruce's POV  
Moments before

"This way," I said as I stood and led Stark towards the hall.

My confusion and apprehension had built during the meeting, and I knew something was up, and now…now I had proof.

"Once this is done," I whispered into Tony's ear causing him to freeze, "the three of us are going to sit down and talk."

"What?" he breathed back to me in shock.

I smirked lightly as I said, "I have much better hearing than most."

"Later," Tony whispered back as realization flood his face, before continuing to walk down the hall.

Oh, we would talk about this eventually.

It's true; I have a lot better hearing than most.

My little friend seemed to have forgotten this…because I was sure I wasn't meant to hear Pen's words…any of them.

But especially not these _"Dad, Bruce and Hulk, Bruce, Hulk, Dad."_

I chuckled as I walked to the lab with Tony Stark.

Now it all made sense….no wonder they were so alike.

"_It looks like our little flame isn't as alone as we thought."_ I thought to Hulk with a smirk.

Hulk grumbled in return and I almost tripped over my feet in surprise when he actually answered me.

"_Bruce and Hulk protect Fire Girl…and Fire Girl family." _

I hummed in agreement as a smile spread across my lips.

"_We protect family."_ I stated and Hulk hummed and mentally nodded in agreement.

Penny was family…our only family…but it looked like our family was about to grow.

"You could've told us, Pen...you and your father are too much alike for your own good." I muttered under my breath at the figure that was following us.

I might not be able to see Pen, but I could still hear her, and I could hear her freeze in shock and chuckled.

Oh, it was funny when people underestimate me.

* * *

**Look! Bruce is the first one to figure it out all by himself! He's special! I actually didn't plan it to go like that…but hey, it worked well.**

**Hey, thanks all of you for everything! I've gotten so many reviews, favs, and followers it so nice! :) **

**I hope you all enjoy the rest of the week/weekend.  
See yah tomorrow peoples,  
Cp **


	13. Just Begun(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**If you all still think that I own a **_**thing**_** then I am afraid that Insania has gotten to you…goodbye.**

* * *

Pen's POV

My heart almost stopped as I heard Bruce whisper to me, "You could've told us Pen, you and your father are too much alike for your own good."

What?

I couldn't have heard him right…

I literally couldn't move, God, he figured it out…

For a moment it was like everything was frozen, and I couldn't think as shock flooded my system.

Then, Bruce chuckled and I snapped out of it almost immediately.

I looked at Bruce's retreating back with a small smile, if anyone figured it out, I didn't care that it was him.

"Good job." I whispered as I smiled lightly and shook my head.

I followed them into the lab, and took out my Tablet…time to pull one over on SHIELD.

* * *

"So," I said as I phased through the door, visible to the two men. "Bruce, you figured it out, I'd give you a medal but…I don't have one on me."

I smirked as I saw Bruce's shocked face and Dad's surprised one.

"What about the cameras?" Dad asked with worry in his voice as he glanced between me and the corners of the room.

I smirked as Bruce's frown deepened, "Oh, don't worry about those idiotic things. I still have my invisibility up, but I just have it on a frequency that effects camera's and bugs but not people."

"So…I assume that this is a good thing?" Bruce stated putting the pieces together.

"Oh yeah." I said smugly as Dad gave me a hug.

"Now," he said holding me at arm's length and looking into my eyes. "The next time you want to go jump around with Asgardians…let me know alright? I don't need you passing out randomly on the other side of the world." he asked, and the look in his eyes told me that we were going to talk about this some more later.

I rolled my eyes but nodded, "Alright, alright…I'm sorry Dad."

"Good, now, ready to have some fun?" Dad asked as he clapped and turned towards Bruce, who was now looking slightly worried.

"Fun?" Bruce repeated, his mind whirling and he looked really confused and spun around.

I clapped and with a smile stated, "Lots and lots of fun."

"Well," Dad said with a smirk, "Let's get to work."

We both chuckled as Bruce gulped and muttered to himself loudly, "What have I gotten myself into?"

* * *

The lab had been Starkified…according to Bruce.

All screens had been discarded and the room was filled with holograms representing the Data. Tony and Bruce took the time to bond while I tinkered around with the programs and systems upgrading things where I could and just helping with everything.

ACDC was blasting through the speakers and when it started playing, I was surprised with Bruce's reaction to the rock.

First he had frozen and eyed the room, then his eyes widened in surprise and he told us, that Hulk liked the music.

I laughed as Dad grinned evilly and turned it up.

Soon, the two were humming along while discussing the fact that Hulk and Bruce could communicate mentally.

"I personally think that it's cool." Dad stated as he threw some data around in the air.

"Why? Isn't your head loud enough without someone else in it?" I drawled and Dad glared playfully at me.

"Oh, shush you." He stated with a smirk as Bruce carefully read the data on Loki's staff.

I personally didn't want them messing with that thing, but my Soul wouldn't let me intervene…which sucked majorly.

The thing was emitting extremely strong negative energy waves. They felt familiar to me, though I couldn't place why. It was one of those blank spots that really bug me.

"The Gamma readings on this are almost identical to the ones on Selvig's reports." Bruce stated as Dad pulled up the info. "But unless one of you has a miracle up your sleeves, this will take weeks to possess."

"We'll just bypass all of SHIELD's systems and direct all of the data to our servers and mainframes. We can clock this around 600 teraflops in almost a tenth of a time then what SHIELD can." Dad replied as he threw two holograms into the trash and left three others spinning.

"You know, all I packed was a toothbrush and glasses." Bruce stated with a smile and Dad laughed.

"Yup, and you brought basically everything to this party." I added as I narrowed my eyes in thought at the staff.

My Soul tugged but I was determined to ignore it. My gut feeling told me that this thing was dangerous, and I didn't want to leave Bruce and Dad here alone with it.

"You know what you should come by Stark Tower sometime. The top ten floors are all R&D, we have all the latest toys. You'd love it; it's the scientists Candy Land." Dad stated as he moved around the room and through the hologram sea with extreme ease, it was easy to see that he did this daily.

"You could even stay if you want." I continued giving Bruce a small smile, "When we say that we've got all the toys, we mean the real stuff. Not the knockoff junk that SHIELD has."

"Exactly!" Dad exclaimed in agreement. "I mean, look at this tech…the newest of this is last year! At the latest! I mean, come-on, SHIELD's firewalls are so bad that it takes me five minutes to get in manually from an outside server."

"It takes me two, from an outside server." I commented as I leaned back in the chair was plopped in.

"What about when you practically have access to the server?" Bruce asked, gesturing around at all of SHIELD's equipment.

Dad and I looked at each other for a moment before large, evil, Cheshire cat grins split across our face.

"Oh, that's easy." Dad smirked and I chuckled.

"I've already been through every single file, hard an electrical, on this carrier. There isn't a think that SHIELD knows that I don't." I stated and both Bruce and Dad looked at me impressed.

"Wow," Bruce stated and I blushed at his praise.

"It's no big deal…I was on here for hours…and I was extremely bored." I stated simply causing Dad to burst out laughing. "Dad is right though, you should come to the Tower."

"I'm afraid that I'm going to have to turn you down, the last time I was in New York I sort of broke Harlem." Bruce stated with a small amount of blush on his cheeks.

"Eh, Harlem Shmarlem. Come on, it'll be fun. Besides, it gets lonely in the Tower with only Dad and his girlfriend around." I stated and Dad looked affronted.

"That's not true!" he exclaimed before smirking "What about _your_ boyfriend, hmm, or your little girlfriends…who frankly scare me. Why is that?"

The sarcasm was literally falling off of his words and I rolled my eyes. That wasn't going to work.

"It's not my fault you're scared of a bunch of teenagers." I rebuked and Dad looked irritated.

"A bunk of teenagers who literally don't belong on this world! How the hell did you meet them anyway?" Dad asked, redirecting the conversation, trying to get answers to the same question that he has been asking for the past three months.

"Dad, we've gone over this, I can't say." I stated and Bruce just looked at all of us extremely confused.

"Oh whatever." Dad sighed as he turned and walked behind Bruce. I rolled my eyes again as he picked up a sharp, electrical, fork…thing and jammed it into his side.

"Ouch!" Bruce exclaimed as he turned and glared at Tony.

"Huh," Dad said as he gazed at the man intently. "Pen was right…you have great control."

"Not all the time," Bruce stated, "I can assure you that."

"Eh, control isn't the goal; it's being able to balance it." Dad replied instantly and Bruce snorted while shaking his head.

"You know, I'm surprised no one else has figured it out. You and Pen are too much alike for your own good." Bruce stated and I smiled.

"Really? Good to hear, Pepper always just complains that we're both too destructive." Dad commented and I laughed, she did say that a lot.

"It's not _my_ fault that you blew up the lab four times in a single week." I stated with a smirk as Bruce looked at Dad in surprise.

"Hey! You had a hand in that…and didn't you end up frying all the electronics in the house like six times after that?" Dad rebuked and I glared.

"It's not _my_ fault that Hel thought that it was _me_ who covered her in pink paint." I informed him knowingly.

"That prank was meant for you, how could I've know it would affect her!?" Dad exclaimed in frustration, this wasn't the first time we had this conversation, and I doubted it would be the last.

I opened my mouth to respond but Bruce interrupted us with an amused look on his face.

"Children, children, calm down. Now, aren't we supposed to be finding the Cube?" Bruce asked and I sighed as Dad pouted.

"Right…we'll talk about this later." He told me before rejoining the holograms.

"You're not going to find it." I stated quietly to myself as my Soul pulled harshly, causing me to flinch.

"The game has just begun." I whispered tiredly and flinched again as my Soul pulled.

My eyes narrowed as I realized just what it was that my Duties were pulling me towards.

My Duties were calling me towards Loki…

I had a bad feeling about that.

* * *

**I am so, so, so sorry that it is so late (at night) Fridays are worse then Tuesdays for me sometimes…well, I wrote it, and here it is.**

**A bit of bonding between Bruce, Tony, and Penny I hope you all are enjoying it.**

**Thanks to everyone for everything,  
Oh, and just saying, if you're going to flame me, then leave a name so I can reply. Oh, and use appropriate lang. if not…then your flames will be used to increase Fati's anger. *smirk***

**Cp**


	14. Debatable(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**Disney, JK and Marvel own everything; the only think I own is the Iron Man 3 poster hanging on my wall.**

* * *

We continued to joke around as the search program scoured the globe, Dad and Bruce were getting along famously, and I was happy, well except for the fact there was a giant ball of dread in my stomach.

Dad really enjoyed jabbing Bruce with the zapping rod every time he wasn't paying attention, ar first Bruce just thought that Dad was crazy, but then he just realized it was Dad being Dad and let him do it.

However, the Captain wasn't happy about that when he finally showed up.

Sadly, he showed up just when Dad jabbed Bruce again.

"Ouch! Tony, are you going to quit that any time soon?" Bruce exclaimed giving Dad a slightly annoyed glare.

"Nope, besides, if Hulk really got all hot and bothered about this think, you would've snapped it a while ago." Dad stated with a smirk.

Bruce sighed and rolled his eyes, "To tell you the truth, the Big Guy's finding this all really amusing, so it's only me you have to worry about annoying."

"Really?" Dad asked truly intrigued, "Well, that takes the fun out of that."

He pouted for a moment, and the second that Bruce looked away, he jabbed him in the shoulder one last time.

"Tony!" Bruce looked at him like he was crazy.

I instantly sensed Rogers walking towards the lab, and pulled up my invisibility.

"Dad, Bruce, Rogers is on his way." I whispered into the com, knowing that Bruce would also hear me.

"It's not going to do anything, you said so yourself. That just takes the fun out of it." Dad shrugged before trying to jab him again, however, Bruce had had enough and yanked it out of his hand.

"Aw," Dad pouted, "Party pooper."

Bruce just rolled his eyes as the Captain decided to interrupt.

"Hey!"

We all turned to see the Captain standing there with a surprised and disapproving look on his face.

"Are you nuts?" Rogers exclaimed as Bruce smirked and chuckled.

"The jury's still out on that." Dad replied before turning back towards Bruce. He gave the man a wink and said,

"You know, I bet a lot of people here are wondering what your secret is."

"Oh," Bruce smiled, glancing between the two men, "I'm sure."

"So, for all of those curious people out there, what is it? Mellow jazz, bongo drums, yoga, a huge bag of weed?" Dad asked, baiting the captain.

Bruce just chuckled in response as Rogers exclaimed, "Is everything a joke to you?"

"Funny things are, but then again, I can find humor anywhere." Dad smirked at the red, white, and blue clad man.

"Threatening the safety of everyone on this ship isn't funny…no offence Doc." Rogers tacked on at the end and Bruce just rolled his eyes.

"Don't worry Captain, I wouldn't be here if I couldn't handle small sharp objects….or annoying people." Bruce added on and gave Tony a playful glare.

"You know," Tony stated as I shook my head, "your still treading around lightly, you need to strut."

I chuckled, oh, you gotta love Tony.

"And you, Mr. Stark, need to focus on the problem." Rogers stated with a disapproving look. Man, he had that look down…he already looks like a disapproving grandparent….oh how I wish I could say that to his face.

"Do you seriously think I'm not?" Dad asked, gesturing around to all of the holograms. "Let me ask you this, why did Fury call us in? Why now? Why not before? What isn't he telling us that's so huge he's sweating about it? I can't do equations without all of the variables, Capsicle."

"You lasted pretty well not knowing about me." I stated simply and Bruce looked slightly confused…we were doing that a lot to the poor man.

"Debatable." Dad muttered under his breath when the Cap looked over at Bruce.

"You think that Fury's hiding something?" The captain asked, starting to look confused.

"He's a spy, come one Cap, he's literally "the" spy. His secretes have secrets and I, for one, want to know what's really going on." Dad stated as he pulled a packet of raspberries out of his pocket.

"Hey!" I exclaimed quietly, "those were mine."

Tony's lips twitched into a smirk just for a moment before tossing a handful into his mouth.

"It's bugging Dr. Green over there too." Dad stated causing the captain to look at Bruce.

"Well…okay, yes. I have thought about it…did you pay attention to Loki's jab to Fury? _"A warm light for all mankind."_ pretty out of the blue." Bruce stated sliding off his glasses and glancing at Tony, "I think that it was meant for you."

Dad held out the packet to Bruce, and he shrugged and took some, "Even if Barton didn't tell Loki about your Tower, it's been all over the news. It's pretty unlikely that he mentioned it for any other reason." Bruce sated before throwing the berries in his mouth.

I frowned as my Soul pulled again, causing my eyes to tear and my hands to clench…

"The Stark Tower? You mean that big, ugly…" The captain fell silent at the look that Dad was giving him. "Building in New York?"

I glared at him; he was annoying; and not the good kind.

"It's powered by an Arc Reactor…a self-sustaining energy source." Bruce inputted while Tony looked like he was about to punch the blonde. "That building will run itself for what, a year?"

"At least," Dad shrugged, "It's the earliest modal; I have about five more under construction right now. I'm the only name in clean energy at the moment. But I'm not complaining too much, it's good for sales."

"But, that's was he's getting at, Loki did his homework…" Tony stated before grabbing more berries.

"So, think about this. If he's the only one in this field, why didn't SHIELD bring him in to work on the Tesseract? Not to mention, what on earth is SHIELD doing in the energy business in the first place?" Bruce stated and smirked at the look on the Captain's face, they were making him think.

"I've been looking into that." Tony stated as he walked up to a hologram, "Though I don't have everything yet, my decryption program for SHIELD's more heavily guarded files is still running."

Now that was a lie… but the captain didn't need to know that.

"I'm sorry, did you just say…" Rogers started but Dad interrupted.

"Jarvis has been running it since before I hit the bridge; really, it's not that hard to get past their firewalls. They have lousy security." Dad stated as he moved around a few holograms and smirked at the look on Roger's face.

"In about an hour I'll know everything that SHIELD knows…all of their dirty laundry, secrets, achievements, and failures…everything…raspberry?" Dad smirked as he held out the packet to the Captain.

"Yet, your confused on why they don't want you around." The captain stated and I chucked.

Dad raised an eyebrow and stated, "Was that sarcasm I heard? Well, it's a bit rough but we'll work on it."

"I'm not confused on that matter, Rogers, I really don't care if SHIELD likes me or not, you see, we tend to not get along on a lot of things. But still, they're an intelligence organization that fears intelligence…a bit contradictory don't you think?" Dad finished with a shrug and threw two holograms into the 'trash'.

"I think Loki's just trying to wind us up. This's a man who means to start a war, and if we don't stay focused he'll succeed." The captain glanced around the lab as "Highway to Hell" started playing.

"Oh, I'm focused, Cap I'm just wondering what your focusing on. You see, I like to focus on the big picture, the whole problem if you please." Dad explained as Bruce shook his head.

I sighed and really had to stop myself from smacking…or shocking, the guy.

"We have orders, we should follow them." Rogers stated and Dad and I snorted, life wasn't about following orders.

"Following's not really my style, I like to forge my own path…break a few rules and wall, along the way." Dad smirked as he regarded the blonde man in front of him.

"and your all about style, aren't you?" Rogers stated rather then asked.

I rolled my eyes; until Rogers bothers to look deeper than the surface of Tony's little games…he was staying on my shit list.

"Of the people in this room, who's one, in spandex tights, two annoying everyone, and three, not of any use?" Dad asked with a smirk as he turned away and started humming along.

"Steve, come one, tell me none of this doesn't smell a bit funky to you." Bruce asked trying to get the man to see what was really going on.

"Just find that Cube." Steve stated as he turned away.

"And aren't these songs a bit violent?" He added on as he reached the door.

Bruce and Dad looked at each other before looking at Rogers.

"Hulk likes them." Bruce shrugged while Tony stated,

"Our lab, our rules."

Rogers gave them all a hard look before leaving.

"Well," I said as I dropped my invisibility, "That was…annoying."

"Yeah, that's seriously the guy my father wouldn't shut up about? I'm wondering if it would've been better to have kept him on ice." Dad commented causing Bruce and I to snort.

"I'm wondering the same thing." I stated and frowned as my soul gave another tug.

"Dad…I'm going to go check on something." I stated as I stood up, biting my lip.

I couldn't ignore my Duties any more.

"Alright," Tony commented as he moved some holograms around, "Just make sure…"

He froze in surprise as I wrapped him in a tight hug.

"I love you Dad." I whispered as Dad look at me in concern.

"I love you too Pen, what's wrong?" he asked looking down at me with worry in his dark eyes.

I sighed and pulled back, "I've just got a bad feeling about all of this."

"Don't worry," Dad said, giving me a small smile, "everything will be alright."

I nodded but didn't say anything else as I vanished from sight and phased through the door out into the hall.

"I hope so Dad," I whispered to myself as I walked down the white halls, "I sure hope so."

* * *

**And done! Another chapter complete…you guys will either hate the next one…or love it.**

**Not sure, anyway thanks for everything,**

**And Flamers, get this in your heads.**

**I, Don't. Care! **

**Cp**


	15. Damn(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**Stop saying I own anything! I have said this a billion times and I will say it again, I OWN NOTHING so go SUE SOMEONE ELSE!**

* * *

**WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME I MISSED AN UPDATE! IF I EVER DO THAT AGAIN TELL ME! I THOUGHT I POSTED THIS CHAPTER ALREADY...BUT I POSTED CHATPER 16 AS 15...SO NOW I'VE FIXED IT! MY DAILY-UPDATE RECORD/STREAK IS BROKEN...NOOOOOO! I feel so bad :'(**

***sobs hysterically in the corner****

* * *

Letting my Duties lead me did nothing to help the ball of dread that had settled in my stomach. In fact, it seemed to have made it worse.

A strange sense of nonchalance came over me, and even though I knew something was wrong…my body wasn't responding.

No emotions flooded through my veins, no dark or worried thoughts flew through my mind.

I was just…there…I was calm, I was…me…but I felt a bit detached.

I wondered if my subconscious was doing this as an act of self-preservation or preparation for something.

My sparks called my silver cloak into my hands as I stalked down the halls. I wasted no time throwing the silky fabric over my shoulders and pulling the hood up. But gut was telling me that this was extremely serious.

Extremely serious called for the full Immortal blow out.

With a small grimace I also summoned the new 'outfit' that Hel and Insania had picked out for me if I ever needed to go into 'superhero' mode again.

The new outfit, (this was the first time I would really be wearing it) was completely black leather. The pants were leggings that cut off two inches below the top of my boots. My old silver belt hung off my hips with a slant, and the metal enforced fabric felt cool against my skin.

The top was made up of two pieces: a thin black long-sleeved shirt (that was completely normal) hugged my skin closely while a tight, well-fitting black vest protected my vital organs.

Hel and Insania hadn't wanted me to wear the black shirt underneath, but since the vest had a deep V-neck and left a few inches of my stomach showing, I wasn't wearing it without that shirt.

My gauntlets settled on my wrists as the finishing touch. There was something comforting in wearing my new outfit…though I did miss my old one, this one just felt...right…for the moment.

I didn't pause as I passed Thor and Coulson talking about Jane as they slowly made their way down the hall.

Thor, however, must've sensed something, for he turned and looked around as I passed. For a brief moment I was worried that I had been discovered when our eyes seemed to lock, but he just continued his conversation and dismissed anything strange he might've felt.

It took me about ten minutes to get to Loki's cell. While closed doors and walls didn't bother me since I could now just phase through them, the people who bustled about the halls were a problem.

I had to be careful not to bump into anyone or anything that would give me away, but I was good at hiding, I had been doing it basically my whole life.

I paused as I came upon the four team guard that was standing outside of the chamber the Loki was kept.

The guards themselves didn't bother me, it was the fact that s_omething_ inside of me was telling me that the moment I entered the room…everything was going to change.

I closed my eyes and focused on the Bond that I shared with Mortem. Mortem was really efficient with that Bond, he could feel my mood and share thoughts if we tried hard enough, but I struggled with using it.

Mortem explained that it was just because of my current state, and that I wouldn't last forever, but his explanation did nothing to quell my annoyance with it.

Calling forth my powers, and focusing everything I had on the connection with my Bonded I projected loudly,

"_**I love you my Bonded,"**_

There was a brief moment of silence, and I started to believe that he hadn't heard me when his cool voice drifted through my mind like smoke.

"_**And I, you, my Bonded…fear not the unknown, for we don't walk alone."**_ Mortem said within my mind before I felt his presence leave and I was alone once more.

But his words gave me the strength I needed, and taking a deep breath, I phased passed the guards and into the room.

* * *

It took Loki under three minutes to sense my presence in the room, and when he did he spun around with a smirk.

"I was starting to wonder if you had forgotten about me." He stated with a sneer his eyes scanning the room, trying to locate me.

I didn't bother answering. I knew that the most high-tech cameras were in this room. I wasn't worried about being seen…I was worried about being _heard_.

Sadly, no matter how often Insania had tried to teach me; in this form I was useless with mental communication, so projecting my thoughts to Loki was out.

"Your silence speaks wonders," Loki continued, his silver tongue coming into play. "Your very powerful…oh your power is like a warm bath after a long day. It strong, is warm, and oh so fascinating."

I didn't response, but I couldn't stop my lips from twitching at his description. Did my energy really feel like that or was he just messing with me?

"You know, you are quiet the strange one. You challenged me when the Mortals' were unready to confront me…but you never actively attacked me. You say that these Mortals aren't as unprotected as I believe, but you have made no moves to stopping me, or my people.

"Surely, one as powerful as you have many allies…but I wonder…are any of them here?" Loki asked with a smirk as he turned towards the camera and spoke loudly and clearly.

"You see…I don't think that the Mortals know you're here. You've been hiding in the shadows, trying to remain unseen. But all you have done is made yourself more of an enemy." Loki stepped closer to the glass and my eyes narrowed but my Duties refused to let me leave.

"You shall pay for challenging me, for even if the power I taste on my lips is true…you have crossed me one too many times." Loki stated and I had to breathe deeply to keep myself from yelling at him.

There was a time and place for everything.

"You followed me here, you haven't attempted to help these foolish Mortals with anything more then empty words. You stand before me too much of a coward to show your face, and yet, you claimed to be protecting them.

"I don't see a protector. I see a worthless, insignificant _worm_ that knows how to speak." Loki spat out and this caused me to twitch.

"You know what I see?" I asked my voice echoing coldly across the room. "I see an excuse of a man who has let years of hurt and jealousy fester and brew until your mind is so fractured…you become a pawn to those who wish to use you.

"You come here, claiming to know what is right, and with the intention on dominating this world. You think that you can do anything, for you are above all the others. You plan and you plot, you think and you scheme.

"You planned for everyone, every agent, every government, and every person that SHIELD would call in to stop you." I stated as I stepped closer and closer to the cage. My voice was cold now, and my tone could rival Mortem's.

"But you forgot one thing; you overlooked something that will be your undoing. In all of your planning, with everyone involved…you over looked something. You over looked me.

"You have crossed a line that I keep. You have stumbled onto my territory…and I'm not letting you go. You want to play god, you want to rule? Well I'm afraid that that's not going to happened, you see…

"You don't know who you're dealing with." I growled and Loki smirked.

"Oh, I may not know who you are…but you are wrong on one thing. It is you who doesn't know who you're dealing with."

As Loki finished his statement the guards from outside burst into the room, armed and ready.

I growled as Loki started laughing. Wondering why my Duties had led me into a trap.

The guards quickly started sweeping the room, while three of them stood in front of the doorway.

I ducked under two and maneuvered silently through the rest, but I knew that I getting out of here undetected was extremely unlikely.

I couldn't phase through people…I wasn't sure why. Gritting my teeth I swiftly sent a wave of energy towards the guards in front of the door that sent them flying back.

Before the others could even turn I was already sprinting silently down the corridor just as an alarm sound.

"**Security breach on Level 4 sector seven; all available units move in. I repeat we have a code blue security breach…"**

I bit my lip and threw up a shield around me just as I skidded around a corner….

And slammed right into Romanoff.

Sadly, the shock of hitting the older woman not only sent me flying back, but also caused my invisibility to fail.

Romanoff's eyes narrowed as I became visible.

It was a microsecond, we both looked at the other, and then it started.

Romanoff flew towards me, and I barely managed to roll away before jumping to my feet. She flew at me with swift kicks and punches, trying her hardest to land one on me.

I swerved through the blows, blocking the dodging, but not landing one either. I slowly caused her to back up down the hall, and the red flood lights flashing made her squint in the bad lighting.

We were evenly matched, as any move was instantly matched by the other. If Romanoff flipped, so did I. if she threw a punch, I would black and retaliate with one of own.

"You seem familiar…have we fought before?" Romanoff inquired as she grabbed me in a headlock.

"Well, not against each other." I replied and instantly flipped her off of me.

As she went to wrap herself around me like she did with Happy all those months ago I slid beneath her and kicked off the wall and started running down the hall.

I ducked my head and was thankful that my hood hadn't fallen as bullets shot by me with deadly accuracy.

Just as I slid around another corner a whole squad of SHIELD agents showed up, and started firing.

"Damn…damn…" I whispered as I threw up my invisibility and my shield before jumping/hovering over all of them.

Sadly, just as I was about to round another corner, more agents appeared blocking off that route.

I turned to the wall, but instead of phasing though, the walls glowed and I screamed in pain as my Core was overwhelmed with energy.

I fell to the ground as my invisibility and shield fell once again.

"Fire at will!" I heard Romanoff shout and realized that she was most likely the more senior agent here.

"Damn…" I muttered as I threw up my shield just in time. The wave of bullets didn't bounce off thought…they stayed, suspended in midair as they were caught in my shield.

I tried to move, tried to stand up, to phase, or to teleport away…but I couldn't.

It seemed that whatever was protecting the walls fried my Core…and I couldn't do more then hold up my shield.

I knew that I wouldn't be able to keep my shield up for long, and that sooner or later, the agents would overwealm me.

"Bloody hell…" I grunted as my energy crackled.

Gingerly, because my limbs felt more like stone then limbs, I reached up and managed to click my cloak's clasp.

It instantly started beeping…and I felt a bit better.

Dad was coming….I just hoped that he would get here in time.

* * *

**Okay…I was wrong. It's the next chapter that you'll totally hate. *evil smirk***

**Yup, Loki revealed Pen to SHIELD and they didn't take her presence there very well.**

**I hope you enjoyed it.**

**Thanks to everyone for everything.  
Cp**


	16. Isn't One of Them(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**What do you know? You lot don't live in my head so you can't say I own anything!**

***every character that exists in my mind scream* "BUT WE DO!"**

***groans***

* * *

Tony's POV

"So how long has Penny been around? From her comment earlier I gathered that you didn't know about her at some point." Banner commented as he leaned back against the wall.

We were a bit bored…Banner and I. The tracking program was running and everything related to SHIELD was hacked so there was no point in digging anymore though their stuff. Pen was out doing whatever she was doing and everyone else on this flying boat was busy…it was just Bruce and me.

"Well, actually I only met Pen a little over a year ago. She applied to be my second PA and got the job…I didn't even know we were related until…well…until we were locked in that idiotic cave. Pen told me a few weeks…I think…before we broke out." I stated with a small smile, thinking about Penny and trying to keep the memories at bay.

"You two are a lot alike." Banner commented with a fond smile on his face.

"Well, yeah…she got my brains and personality….to some extent. But she got her Mom's heart." I said warmly, it was weird being so open with someone I just met…but I really like Bruce.

"She's a great kid." Bruce said with a smile and affection in his voice.

"She's Fanta…." I froze as the alarm blared around us and a voice said over the speakers

"**Security breach on Level 4 sector seven; all available units move in. I repeat we have a code blue security breach…"**

"Tony…I'm sure she's fine…" Bruce stated as my heart nearly froze in horror and my drained of color.

No…no it couldn't be….

"Yeah….maybe it's just Loki…" I muttered, but I was unable to convince myself of that fact. My eyes widened as I realized that there _had_ been a reason for Pen to worry….god what if something had happened….

"Tony…it's okay…" since when was Bruce walking away? Why was he leaving in a time like this?

Bruce spoke again but my brain was far too clouded to realize what he was saying.

I didn't know how I got to the ground, or when Bruce started shaking me but my eyes snapped open instantly as music filled the air, drowning out the alarm.

The deep slow note of a violin filled the air and my heart practically froze as I snapped to attention.

"Tony…Tony what's wrong?" Bruce's voice echoed through my thoughts as the song continued on.

"Penny." I whispered in horror as and I jumped to my feet, my body finally catching up to my brain.

"What?' Bruce asked as he stood looking at me in confusion.

"Penny!" I exclaimed and took off running…the code….we had sworn to use it only in emergencies….

'Not again…I can't do it again…' I thought desperately as I ran down the hallway.

"TONY!" Bruce exclaimed and in an instant he was right behind me.

"What's happening?!" He asked as we rounded a corner and I skidded to a stop as Coulson and Thor froze at the sight of us.

"Stark, if you have anything to do about…." Coulson froze as he caught site of my face. He must have put two and two together quickly but before he could speak I took off running down the hall again.

"What is happening?" I heard Thor asked as the three of them kept up with me well.

"Nothing good." Coulson stated in reply.

Then, the music changed, a guitar joined the mix and my heart froze clenched and leapt at the same time at the song that began to play.

"God…no…" I whispered and for a moment, I couldn't move, for a moment the whole world meant nothing as I heard Pen's soft voice drift down from the speakers.

_If I die young….bury me in satin…_

"NO!" I screamed and took off running, pushing my legs harder and harder. We didn't meet any agents on the way, but that didn't matter.

_Lay me down on a bed of roses_

It didn't matter that I was being followed, or that they were screaming at me to stop or slow down…

It didn't matter that my walls were breaking around people I didn't know…

It didn't matter that we were floating hundreds of feet in the air, and that an insane Alien was aboard…

_Sink me in a river…_

I had to get to Penny…

This was code red…this meant that it was_ bad._

…_At dawn…_

I couldn't think….

Nothing mattered.

The song filled my thoughts and my actions, everything became a blur…

I was still running, I had to still save her…

But that song…

That stupid song…

_Send me away with the words of a love song…._

But I wasn't going to send her away, not now and not ever. No one was going to take her away from me…

I would kill anyone who tried.

_Uh oh…uh oh…_

I turned another corner…that much I knew…and then….

Everything came crashing back into focus.

_Lord make me a rainbow _

Penny laid there, she was wearing a different outfit…the hood of her cloak had fallen back and she was surrounded by about fifty agents shooting at her constantly.

_I'll shine down on my mother_

I saw the telltale sign of her shield as the air around her sparked and crackled with energy. However, I instantly noticed that something was different…her shield was repelling the attacks...it was just freezing them.

_She'll know I'm safe with you when she stands under my colors, oh…_

"No…" I whispered as I realized that her eyes were closed in concentration, sweat coated her forehead and she was literally shaking with strain.

_And life ain't always what you think it ought to be…_

Why….why….

_No…._

"No…" I whispered a bit louder as Coulson and the others rounded the corner.

"Shit!" I heard Coulson exclaim and I heard Bruce growl…actually growl.

_Ain't even grey, but she buries her baby…_

"Stop!" I yelled as I tried to push through the thick sea of SHIELD agents.

_The sharp knife…of a short life…._

I wouldn't let this happen…I couldn't. Penny was everything…she was my life…my star….my baby…

_Oh well,_

"Stop!" I screamed and instantly I felt a larger, stronger body helping me through the crowd.

"LEAVE LADY PENNY ALONE!" Thor thundered and a few of the younger agents faltered a bit before turning back towards their target.

_I've had just enough time…._

Oh, but she hadn't…she was just a child…

"PENNY!" I yelled as I managed to push past a few agents.

_If I die young….bury me in satin_

"STOP!" I exclaimed, and I heard Bruce's screams accompany my own.

"Cease fire!" Coulson ordered loudly and for a moment…I hoped that they would listen…

_Lay me down on a bed of roses…._

Most of the agents paused, and for a moment, I thought that everything would be okay…

_Sing me in the river…at dawn_

I gasped, and everything seemed to slow as I finally pushed myself towards the front and out of the crowd.

"I said, CEASE FIRE!" Coulson screamed…if I hadn't been so worried I would have been shocked….

_Send me away with the words of a love song_

The gun fire stopped, and I don't know if it was because of that, or if Penny sensed me…

But she opened her eyes.

_The sharp knife…._

Our eyes connected, and just for a moment everything was okay…everything was going to be okay.

_Of a short life…._

**BANG!**

A single gunshot rang through the air and it was as if everything slowed…

Penny's eyes widened in shock as she turned her head towards the noise…

The bullets in front of her fell to the ground as her sparks flew around wildly…

I saw her flinch, her head hitting the wall….

A large blast of energy sent everyone flying back…

_Oh, well…_

Everyone that is…. except for me.

For a moment I couldn't believe my eyes, then I noticed the blood pouring from her chest and within an instant, I was at her side.

_I've had just enough time_

Time returned to normal.

"Penny! Penny? Penny baby…can you hear me?" I exclaimed as I knelt at her side and carefully lifted her head into my lap.

"Hi…Daddy." Penny couched and more blood splattered the walls.

_And I'll be wearing white_

I didn't waste a second as I shrugged off my jacket and instantly tried to press it too the wound, only to notice that it wasn't helping.

_When I come into your kingdom_

My eyes widened and my brain spun as I realized just where the blood was coming from.

_I'm as green as the ring on my little cold figure_

It took me only a moment to peel back the thin black, blood soaked fabric around the wound and discovered a smoking, sizzling, destroyed Arc Reactor, and if the amount of blood was anything to go by…it went even deeper.

_I've never known the loving of a man_

The bullet had hit the one place that it shouldn't have…

"Daddy?" Penny asked weakly and I could already tell she was suffering from the effects of losing her Arc.

_But it sure felt nice when he was holding my hand_

"It's okay Pen," I whispered as I pressed my jacket back onto her bleeding chest.

"Jarvis, activate emergency code Delta, Charlie, 6459-3!" I exclaimed loudly, knowing that my faithful AI would hear me…he had been in SHIED's systems for a long time now.

_There's a boy here in town, _

"Protocol has been activated. Estimated arrival time five minutes." Jarvis' voice echoed through the hall.

I could hear everyone getting back onto their feet, most in confusion, many in anger.

_Says he'll love me forever_

"That's not going to be soon enough." I whispered in horror, as my brain remembered that Pen could only survive a few minutes without her Arc…three to four at the most.

_Who would have thought forever could be severed by…_

"Pen, Penny listen to me, I need you to stay awake, alright?" I stated, my voice hardening and I maneuvered my arms so I could lift her.

…_the sharp knife of a short life…._

"…alright Daddy…" Penny whispered in reply as her eyes dropped.

It took me only an instant to grit my teeth, lift Penny into my arms and get to my feet.

_Oh well_

Making sure that I wasn't going to drop her, I turned to see everyone (on unsteady feet and dazed) staring at me.

_I've had just enough time_

Bruce and Coulson looked the most concerned, while Thor looked worried and confused.

Romanoff and Rogers (when had he shown up?) were looking at me in shock with narrowed eyes.

_So put on your best, boys…_

I ignored everyone, and tightened my hold on my daughter as I turned to Coulson.

I didn't even need to open my mouth as he stepped forward, and after placing a hand on my shoulder nodded towards the left corridor.

_And I'll wear my pearls_

"Infirmary's this way." He nodded and I instantly followed him down the hall.

"What is the meaning of this!?"

_What I never did is done_

I didn't even bother to turn; I just glanced behind me at the SHIELD director as cold fury rose up from within.

"Someone shot my daughter." My voice was hard, cold, and promised pain to the one responsible. "And when I find out just who is responsible…Loki won't be your only problem."

_A Penny for my thoughts…_

I turned away and continued, with a brisk, swift pace after Coulson who was content with ignoring his boss.

_Oh no…_

"Will Lady Penny be alright?" Thor asked, and I almost jumped in surprise, I didn't know he had followed, but I turned to see that Bruce was also with us.

_I'll sell 'em for a dollar_

I clenched my jaw and couldn't bring myself to answer, though I knew that they meant well.

"Hopefully Thor, hopefully." Bruce answered instead, although his tone was much harder than usual and had a curtain growl to it.

_They're worth so much more after I'm a goner_

Thankfully, the med bay was on the level, and we managed to get there swiftly.

_And maybe when you'll hear the words I been singin'_

I instantly put Penny down on a small cot that was against the wall in a privet room.

_Funny when you're dead how people start listening_

"What are you doing?" Rogers…who I was upset to find that he had followed us asked.

I ignored him, and using a small pocket knife I pulled an idle, nearby monitor apart.

_If I die young, bury me in satin_

I quickly disconnected three wires from the monitor but kept them connected to the main power source and stripped their ends.

_Lay be down on a bed of roses_

After touching the negative and positive ends together to make sure there was a charge, I quickly tied them to Penny's wrist…

_Sink me in a river at dawn_

She jolted for a moment as the energy surged through her. Her eyes blinked slowly as her mind started to come back online.

_Send me away with the words of a love song_

"Hi Daddy." She whispered softly and I couldn't help the tear the fell down my face at her words.

_Uh oh, uh oh_

"Hey, baby…" I whispered softly back, and after settling onto the cot, I pulled her into my lap.

_The ballad of a dove, oh ah_

"I'm gonna get you fixed up…alright?" I stated softly and brushed part of her hair away.

_Go with peace and love_

Penny chuckled weakly in response and closed her eyes.

"Daddy…that's not gonna happen."

_Gather up your tears, keep them in your pocket_

"Yes, yes it is. We'll fix it, just like we always do." I stated….pleaded…I couldn't do this again…

I had lost her once…I wouldn't survive a second.

_Save 'em for a time when you're really gonna need 'em_

"Daddy…the bullet didn't just destroy my Core…it damaged the socket as well. I'd need a whole new…well…everything really….for the Arc to even work…" Penny muttered and her eyes started to droop again.

_Oh…_

"You don't know that…" I sated, please, oh God please…I couldn't lose her…

_The sharp knife…of a short life…_

"Daddy…." Penny whispered and I had to blink away tears just to gaze into her eyes.

"Dating Death does come with its privileges." Penny continued looking up at me sadly.

_I've had just enough time_

"This isn't one of them." She whispered softly and slowly, oh so slowly; I saw her eyes drop and her color fade away.

"No, no…come on Baby…." I couldn't even less what I was saying aloud…or what was only in my mind.

_So put on your best, boys,_

"I…love you…Daddy…" Penny whispered, locking eyes with me for a moment before they flickered over to the side for another.

"Thank you...guys….for everything…." Penny managed to gasp out before her blue-green eyes locked onto mine.

_And I'll wear my pearls_

As the song drew out it's last cord Pen's eyes fluttered, and before I even realized it….

I was once again holding my daughters corpse.

Only this time…Mortem wasn't here to bring her back.

* * *

**DON'T KILL ME!**

**I told you all that you were either going to hate or love this chapter.**

**I have to tell you, I have no clue how long this is because my page count thingy isn't working… but I felt bad when I tried to cut it off.**

**Bet ya'll weren't expecting that huh! **

**Well, I've had this chapter planned since the very beginning…part of me can't believe that I just wrote it.**

**Do you think Pen's gonna stay out of it for long? **

**I'm not telling.**

***evil smirk***

**And I promise…this is the last time Pen dies.**

**EVER**

**So don't yell at me.**

**Oh, and this was the only song that I could find that sorta fit….if you know a better one…oh well.**

**Thanks to everyone….hope I'm keeping you waiting for the next update. *giant evil smirk*  
Cp**


	17. The Most Important Thing(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing! So please, please, please DON'T KILL ME!**

**!IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!  
Okay to clear things up, yesterday I posted chapter 16(I thought) as 15. I soon realized my mistake when someone pointed out that I missed an daily update (you all didn't tell me!) and I had thought that I posted 15 (where Pen confronts Loki) but I didn't. So I fixed it. If you have not read the chapter where Pen confronts Loki then go read Chpt. 15…I apologize for this mistake. Chpt. 15 is new, and the old 15 is now 16. Really, really, sorry!**

* * *

Tony's POV

I don't know how long we all just sat there. I slowly rocked Pen's body back and forth, not even sure what I was doing.

Everything was a blur, I didn't think of anything, there was nothing, and there was nobody...

I was just blank.

My brain had shut down and my heart had practically stopped.

That was, until Rogers decided to be an ass.

"What just happened?"

I don't remember moving, but one second I was sitting on the cot holding Pen...the next I was literally in Roger's face.

"I thought that would be obvious." I sneered, and part of my brain was yelling at me to deck him. "My daughter just died."

"You don't have a daughter." Rogers stated with a frown. Before I could open my mouth to argue Coulson stepped in.

"Yes, yes he does."

"What?!" Fury and Romanoff exclaimed in shock.

"That, should've been obvious." I snapped before closing my eyes as my heart clenched.

"Well, then what on earth was she doing here? You should've known better then to bring her on a dangerous mission. No wonder she got…." Rogers didn't even managed to finish his sentence before my fist slammed into his nose and he stumbled back.

"Shut up you self-dignified ass!" I snarled, I didn't really remember moving. One minuet, I was giving Rogers the death glare, the next…my fist connected with his nose and he was sent flying back.

I had to admit…that felt good.

"STARK!" Fury yelled and both he and Romanoff stepped forward, their guns raised.

Before I could do a thing, besides blink, Coulson, Bruce and Thor had all stepped forward. They weren't blocking me; they were just making it clear that they backed me.

"You shall not harm Lady Penny's father." Thor stated darkly, a hard look on his face.

"Leave him alone, he just lost his daughter for God's sake!" Bruce growled, and that got through Fury the best.

"Which he didn't tell us about! Coulson, you knew about this? Why didn't you report it?!" Fury ordered, staring at his leading agent in shock and anger.

Coulson rolled his eyes and I smirked, oh it felt good to take my anger out on Fury.

"It didn't seem significant at the time." Coulson shrugged before eyeing the only three who had never met my daughter.

"Not significant! Coulson… this conversation is not over!" Fury thundered before he turned to me, however, before he could say a word, I stepped forward.

"It wouldn't be a good idea to push me right now Fury." I hissed coldly, "Now, I shall only ask you two this once."

I eyed Romanoff and Fury sternly before asking, "Who shot her."

Neither answered, but I saw Romanoff's eyes flicker for a moment. So, she knew…well, let's see…

"Coulson…" I started, but he was on the same line of thought so I didn't need to continue.

"I didn't see who it was." Coulson stated, and both Thor and Bruce also made noises of ignorance.

"This is not relevant to the matter…" Fury stated and I was instantly in his face.

"Not relevant? My daughter just got _shot _by one of _your_ men…and you don't care? It's not relevant? SHE WAS FUCKING SIXTEEN FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!" I yelled my eyes narrowed in rage.

"Mr. Stark…." Romanoff started but scathing look in her direction shut her up.

"Now," I hissed barely containing my rage, "Are you going to tell me who's responsible for this or not?"

There was a pregnant silence as Fury just stared at me, before he said, "If we had been aware of her, or if she had never been here then…."

I must have moved or made some kind of motion that caused Coulson to grab my shoulder…because he did.

"Tony…I know you're angry and hurting right now but this isn't going to help."

I closed my eyes and turned away from Fury with a nod to Coulson who looked relieved.

However, when I heard Fury mutter something (I can't remember what it was now…) I spun on my heel and my fist slammed into his face.

I felt very satisfied and smug when I heard the 'crunch' that I was sure was Fury's nose.

I turned away from Fury, who was staring up from the floor with a shocked look on his face, with a smirk.

"Jarvis," I shouted and the AI instantly replied,

"Yes, Sir?"

"Replay the corridor footage…I want to know who shot Penny. Now." I stated coldly.

Thor looked extremely sad, while Coulson's mask was up and Bruce…it was Bruce I instantly became worried about.

"Stark! I thought I told you to STAY OUT OF MY SYSTEMS!" Fury yelled, but I ignored him.

Bruce was standing a bit away from the rest of us, his eyes closed, rubbing his temples…and he was muttering to himself.

"Stark!" Both Rogers and Fury yelled at me but I ignored them, turning towards my new friend.

"You alright here?" I asked and my jaw clenched as Bruce's eyes locked mine…

Except they weren't his eyes…they were Hulk's bright green.

"Give me a sec." Bruce managed to choke out before going back to muttering to himself.

"…it's alright Big Guy…calm down…." I heard before I sighed, why…why now?

Then, of course…everything had to get worse.

"Tony! Where's Penny!?"

Well, that wasn't a voice I was expecting.

I turned to see Hel standing on the other side of the room, and she couldn't see Pen from where she was standing.

Thor instantly looked shocked to see her…where they related? I couldn't remember if Penny had ever said something about it.

I didn't say anything to the black haired, purple eyed girl, I just stepped aside giving her a view of her friend.

Her eyes widened in horror as her unique eyes flickered between me and my daughter.

"I thought that you and Mortem would have her." I stated and, if possible, her eyes widened even further…though this time it was in horror.

"What?! No…we didn't even sense it…." Hell instantly said, her eyes narrowed and she started muttering to herself. "That's not possible…should have….unless…"

Then her eyes hardened in realization… (What she realized, I had no clue) and she cursed. "Look, Mortem and I'll take care of this…just make sure my father doesn't make any more problems."

Ah, that's what Penny had mentioned….Hel was Thor's niece… now I could see the resemblance.

"FATHER!" I heard Fury shout in horror before Hel waved to Thor and vanished.

"…I wondered why Mortem didn't show up…" I stated quietly to myself as Fury rounded on me.

"What the hell is going on here!?"

I raised an eyebrow at his exclamation, and was surprised to see that I had calmed a lot.

If Mortem and Hel…Death and his Right Hand, didn't know about Pen's death…then maybe she was wrong…

Maybe there were a few more benefits to dating Death.

That calmed my heart down enough to clear my mind…and slip my masks back into place.

When I didn't answer immediately Fury pulled out his gun along with Romanoff and pointed it at me…to my shock.

"Now, who was that?" He stated coldly, and Thor stepped in before anyone else could.

"My niece, now lower your weapons." The Asgardian stated with a sharp edge to his voice.

"How do we know that she isn't working with Loki? Or that he doesn't have Stark under his influence." Fury snapped at the God and I wanted to punch the man again.

"Stark could be compromised, and the girl could've been part of a team sent to rescue Loki…they might've been compromised as well." Rogers stated, and I snapped again, God…what was wrong with this man?!

I punched him again, however, this time he was expecting it and dodged. When he went to strike back, I pressed a button on my belt and a personal shield, based on Pen's, popped into existence.

"Now," I hissed as his eyes widened in surprise, "are you going to stop being incompetent for a moment and _use your head_!?"

Rogers narrowed his eyes at me, but said nothing.

"She's been helping nonstop for the last year." Coulson stated as if it was obvious, "She was Electra…before she retired. She was also the one who got all of the civilians…who you all were ignoring…to safety."

"Aye, she works not with my brother. She helped me months ago when I was banished to Earth and my bother attempted to destroy me." Thor pointed out.

"So, will please stop dragging my daughter's name through the dirt!" I exclaimed, though my voice didn't raise…it only hardened. "She didn't do nothing wrong!"

When Rogers didn't answer I continued, rage flaring back up in my chest, "Or did almost a century in ice cause you to lose some of your brain cells…"

I saw his fist coming of course, and it impacted the shield about five inches from my face. However, I hadn't taken into account Rogers' strength.

I was thrown back, and landed right on top of Bruce.

"Are you alright?" I asked as I got to my feet, only to freeze.

It seemed that any progress Bruce was making with the Other Guy failed when I crashed into them.

He was kneeling on the ground, his hands over his ears, and his skin was changing colors rapidly.

"Shit." I cursed and took a step back.

"Bruce…come one, Bruce buddy….Big Guy, calm down…it's okay…no one wants to hurt you…" I tried to calm the Big Guy down and get Bruce back, but it wasn't working.

Bruce's changing face snapped up and his bright, rage filled eyes locked onto mine before he threw his head back and yelled, "FIRE GIRL WAS OUR FRIEND!"

By the time he had finished the sentence…Bruce was gone…and Hulk was here.

"Damn." I stated, as Rogers, Fury, and Romanoff rushed into action.

They ushered the rest of us out of the door within an instant.

Hulk, seeing that we were 'getting away' charged, but Fury slammed his hand on the control panel and a thick glass and metal door slid shut almost hitting Hulk's face.

I saw Hulk hit the door; his eyes narrowed in rage, and knew it wouldn't hold for long.

"Hill, Discharge Med Bay 6. Now!" Fury yelled into his com. his gun drawn. He wasn't staring at Hulk though…he was staring at me.

"What?!" I exclaimed as a loud grinding sound appeared.

Coulson grabbed onto me before I could move, Hulk's and my gazes locked for a moment, and I thought I saw sadness hidden beneath the rage…

But then, I saw the Med Bay disconnect with the rest of the Helicarrier…

"NO!" I yelled as Thor grabbed my arms. For a moment, Hulk looked at me in shock, before the whole room with Pen and Bruce inside, fell through the air.

"No!" I screamed, as pain tore through my heart….

I didn't have her body…

How was Mortem supposed to heal her if I didn't have her body!?

I clenched my teeth and turned to Fury.

"Why the bloody hell did you do that!" I screamed, Pen's favorite curse words coming to my lips as I shouted at the man.

"I did what was best for everyone on board." Fury stated coldly as he looked at me with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Best for everyone?! MY DAUGHTER WAS IN THERE!" I screamed, I was practically hysterical again…but I didn't care.

"She was already gone, Stark." Fury said, "Now…I suggest you get yourself cleaned up and back to the lab."

I couldn't believe it.

My daughter had just died…and Fury wanted me to get back to work!

I glared at him, and everyone watched one another…just in case anyone started throwing punches again.

But I didn't, I knew that I was walking a very fine line…if I wanted to figure out who was the bastard who shot Penny…I would have to work with SHIELD…for now.

"Bastard." I hissed before turning and stalking away.

Oh, I was getting back to work.

But I'd be screwed if I ever helped Fury, Romanoff, or Rogers again.

Not when it was _their_ fault that I just once again lost the most important thing in my life.

"Sir, I don't have the shooter yet," Jarvis' voice echoed through my earpiece and not the intercom system. "But I have discovered that Loki is the one that alerted SHIELD to Miss Penny's presence, he basically angered her to the point of revealing herself, sir."

"Screw 'em all." I muttered, oh…Loki would be sorry he pissed me off…and so would anybody else who crossed my path.

* * *

**I feel really, really, bad for Tony (and Bruce…)…but it was nice having him give Rogers and Fury a piece of his mind…that felt really, really good. ;)**

**The song from the last chapter, because someone asked, was "If I Die Young" by The Band Perry**

**This is going to stay extremely AU from this point forward…mostly….yup.  
Like usual…this chpt didn't go as planned…but oh well, when does it ever? *winks to all the other Authors who know what I'm talking about.***

**Anyway, Penny won't be out of it for long…**

**Do you think I should include the scene where Hel tells Mortem that they've lost Pen's Soul? **

**Let me know if I should.**

**I already have it in my head…its funny….hehehehe….*evil grin***

**Thanks for everything, everyone  
Cp**


	18. What Happened(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing, if I own anything then you wouldn't be reading this on FF and Pen would be in ALL the movies...so there. :P**

* * *

Sadly, I was back in the lab within about a half hour.

I had changed out of my blood socked suit and jut put on a pair of jeans and an ACDC T-shirt. I didn't give a damn about what other people thought of me right now. They knew about Penny...and I didn't care about what they thought of me.

Just because I was in the lab didn't mean that I was working on finding the Tesseract, oh the program was still running, but at the moment I was more concerned with finding out who had shot my daughter.

"Run it again." I ordered Jarvis as I studied closely the footage of the hall where it all happened.

"Of course sir," Jarvis replied and the footage restarted from the beginning.

I watched as Romanoff and Pen came into view, fighting, then Pen had tried to get away as she slowly became surrounded. But when she tried to Phase through the wall, it electrocuted her, and she collapsed, her hood falling back.

Then, I saw Romanoff yell at them to open fire, oh she was going to pay for that, before Pen was soon under bombardment.

Almost instantly, I showed up in response to the music that was playing, and it took us only a second to fight our way to the front of the crowd. (It felt longer than that)

Coulson finally managed to get them to stop shooting, and then the one single shot ran out.

I scowled as my heart twisted painfully at the sound. No matter how many times I went over the feed...it hurt didn't fade.

"Jarvis rotate thirty degrees and zoom in on the left." I ordered I had finally managed to catch a glimpse of movement out of the corner of my eye right before the shot was fired...

Now all I had to do was clear the footage up enough to figure out who had did it.

Then they would pay...dearly.

"Stark what on earth are you doing? You're supposed to be finding the Tesseract!" Fury exclaimed as he stalked into the lab.

The lab was quiet dreary without Pen and Bruce...I knew that Bruce was alright. He had survived worse...but a part of me worried that both of my Lab partners were now gone.

The other part was hoping...praying...that Mortem would bring my little girl back.

"I'm trying to find out who shot my daughter." I scowled in response to the black clad man. "The program's still running, I'll let you know as soon as it gets a hit."

Fury opened his mouth to talk but I cut him off, "You know, I'm starting to wonder if you're really worried about the Tesseract, or if you're just worried about saving your behind with Phase2."

Fury looked surprised that I knew, but I just ignored him.

"Please, I know practically everything in your system. If I don't...then Jarvis does...and Penny did." I stated.

"You know, he's right. Why's SHIELD making weapons from the Cube?" I was surprised to see Rogers, whose nose had a bandage on it, walk into the lab with this bulky, God ugly gun.

Huh, while we had seen the blueprints...we hadn't actually seen any prototypes.

"That this it butt ugly." I stated before going back to my video feed.

Apparently, Rogers was angry that he had been 'lied to' or something along those lines.

But I really didn't care what Fury did with the Cube...he wasn't getting it back.

As soon as I found it, it was going straight to Thor...or Hel, depending on who got back to me faster.

The original plan was for Pen to take it to Mortem...but I had no way of contacting her MIA boyfriend.

I chuckled as I listened to Rogers and Fury going at one another about being outnumbered and way out of our depth and snorted; oh this was rich coming from them.

They had just hashed me out for keeping secrets! And 'endangering everyone on board' they were all so self-righteous that it wasn't funny.

"Wait, so let me get this straight, Star-Spangled Pants. Your all worked up because SHIELD is making weapons from the Cube...but you're not at all upset that a _child_ just got shot and they're doing nothing about it?" I exclaimed after listening to them going at tit for like...five or ten minutes.

"They're making weapons of mass destruction here!" Rogers yelled and I rolled my eyes.

"And so is everyone else on the planet!" I exclaimed, sheesh. It had been almost eighty years since the first Nuke was dropped...the world has had plenty of time to recreate and arm themselves with the same tech. "I don't see you yelling at them! I seriously think that you have your priorities mixed up!" I exclaimed.

"My priorities? My priorities are to the world, Mr. Stark. Where are yours." Rogers stating coldly, and I glared at them.

"If I have learned one thing after this past God Awful year, _Captain_," I hissed moving aside the hologram of the hallway and glared, "is that family comes first. Always."

"What about the sake of the world? Shouldn't they come first?!" Rogers exclaimed and I narrowed my eyes.

I barely knew the man...but he wasn't being himself...or everyone's description of him.

"Family is very important, Son of Roger." Thor stated, and I wondered when he showed up, I glanced around and noticed that everyone...besides Bruce who was...well...yeah...was now here.

"How'd I miss that?" I muttered to myself.

"You know, you shouldn't ask questions that you won't like the answers of." I stated with a look at Rogers.

"You all must agree with me." Rogers said looking at Coulson, Romanoff and Fury.

"That's not a fair question to ask. Besides of Coulson's ….sorta...ex-girlfriend, they don't have families." I snorted, "Well, unless they found some way to hide them...like I did, but I doubt that."

"Speaking of that." Fury drawled coldly and I rolled my eyes, "We will need to debrief on that soon."

I rolled my eyes and replied, "Yeah, sure you can yell at me all you want once this whole mess is sorted out...happy!?" I asked sarcastically and Fury just gave me a stern look.

"What we need to focus on right now, is the intergalactic threat that is breathing down our necks." Fury drawled glaring at me.

"Sure, whatever. I'll let you know as soon as I have the Cube." I said and turned back towards my holograms, dismissing them.

"Oh no Stark...you're too connected to this mess to be left alone. Rogers, I want you to watch him, one toe out of line and I want to know about it." Fury said, and I whipped around a hard look on my face.

"Oh no, you're not assigning me _another_ baby sitter!" I exclaimed giving Fury the deadliest look I could muster.

"You have proven, Mr. Stark, that you need one." Fury stated and Coulson stepped in.

"I'll watch him." the senor agent suggested but Fury shot him down.

"Oh no, you're getting reassigned. I've realized that you and Stark can't be trusted together." Fury snarled and looked disappointed at his agent.

"Sorry Buddy." I said, and Coulson shrugged in response, though I knew it affected him more then he would let it show.

"Will someone just answer the question?" Rogers declared and I looked at him strangely.

"Just want question is it that you want answered? I believe that you have asked quite a few." I drawled with a smirk.

"Why're you making Phase 2 weapons?!" Rogers exclaimed and all of us rolled our eyes.

"They were made...because of him!" Fury exclaimed pointing to Thor.

"God, you freaked out because you realized that you aren't the most powerful thing in the universe and decided to make weapons? What a great idea. Personally, I don't get what the big deal is. Okay, aliens and other dimensions are real...we have mutants for crying out loud! I don't know what the big fuss is..." I stopped mid rant as I saw all the humans looking at me weirdly...Thor wasn't' human and he was the only one not looking at me like I had grown a second head.

I paused, thinking over what I just said before saying, "Huh, I have been spending too much time around Penny...eh, oh well. People still need to wake up and smell the coffee."

"You are a strange Mortal." Thor stated looking at me strangely.

"Thanks!" I exclaimed, taking it as a compliment, wither he meant it like that or not.

"And very much like your daughter." Thor added and I gave him a large smile. It was nice to know that I still had someone backing me. Since Bruce was...otherwise occupied and Coulson's strings had been cut so to speak.

"You speak much wisdom. My realm means Midgard no harm; we want nothing but peace with your people." Thor stated turning his attention back to the matter at hand.

"You're not the only ones out there. Loki's not the only threat." Fury growled and I snorted.

"You actually got that right…Loki's not the main threat. Whoever is pulling his strings is." I stated and everyone turned to look at me in shock.

"How do you know this?" Thor asked me in curiosity.

I shrugged and rubbing the back of my head…I hadn't meant to say that… "I may or may not've listened in on Pen's com. when she was talking…taunting….Loki."

"How do we know she was telling the truth?" Romanoff stated, Coulson opened his mouth but before he could say anything I snorted.

"Did the whole thing with Hel _not_ register with you? She has a lot of powerful…and strange….friends." I stated, "Besides…she wouldn't lie about that."

At Fury's unbelieving look I narrowed my eyes at him in challenge…and he backed down for now.

* * *

Third Person POV

Hel sighed as she reappeared on the grey barren cliff that overlooks Supplicium. This was where her boss came to think when he was in this Dimension.

"What has happened?" Mortem's cold hard voice drifted over the sounds of crumbling earth and molten lava below.

"M…my Lord Death…" Hel stammered, she was terrified of her boss right now. She had only seen him truly angry once…and that was because someone kept on sending his Bonded's Soul to him over and over again. But this…this would be much worse.

Mortem, sensing her budding fear, turned and his black eyes locked onto her purple ones.

"Spit it out." He snarled with a sneer. Loki's actions had caused Mortem to work overtime for the past Mortal day or so (her as well,) and he hated working overtime.

"I…I went to check on the Lady…like you asked…but….when…." Hel started stuttering as Mortem's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"What. Happened." He demanded, and instantly he was right in the Asgardian's face.

Hel swallowed before closing her eyes and saying, "I appared infront of my Uncle…and other Mortals…as well as Aequivalere's Sire….he…she's missing my Lord."

Mortem froze before narrowing her eyes. If she was simply missing then his Adiutor would not be infront of him shaking in fear.

"What do you mean, she's missing." He hissed and Hel swallowed nervously before continuing.

"Not…not like that…it seems…My Lord…that her Soul didn't pass into this Realm when she passed." Hel managed to stammer before ducking her head and waiting for her boss' rage to break.

"Are you saying," Mortem hissed his energy and aura swirling around him in his anger. "That we LOST MY BONDED's SOUL!"

"Ye…yes…My Lord." Hel mumbled before he turned and let out a wave of pure energy. It crackled out through the air as it flew across Supplicium.

"Impossible! All Souls come to MY REALM when it is they're time! We would have sensed it if it was her Time!" Mortem deadpanned, trying to make sense of the situation.

"Well..." Hel started but froze as Mortem's gaze snapped back to her.

"Well what?!" He demanded his thinking clouded with a sense of panic that was completely new to the Immortal.

"Well…we would sense her Time…unless…." Hel paused again and Mortem growled, causing her to quickly continue. "Unless….well, unless another Immortal Interfered."

Mortem's eyes narrowed before he vanished with a swirl of shadows. He was going to Cor…the Immortal Dimension…they're home.

He had some family members to interrogate.

Hel sighed in relief as her boss left, and then groaned as she realized that now _she_ was the one who had to deal with the influx of Souls…

"Just great." Hel muttered before getting back to work.

* * *

Third POV  
Other Dimension

Insania sighed as she held her Sister's Soul, she knew that this was forbidden, but she didn't have a choice…if only they knew what she did. But then, they would be just as Insane as she was…and that wouldn't do at all.

Closing her eyes, Insania's dark silver power swirled around her and slowly seaped into her younger Sister's Soul.

She had work to do…a Sister to save…

And to do that she needed to Cleanse her Soul.

* * *

**Hehehe….Yup! Insania! Okay, I really want to know. How many of you think that Insania is the Evil Mastermind behind all of this? And how many think she's trying to help?**

**I'm not telling you…but I really want to know your view on the insane Immortal.**

**Sleepy Kamikins…I hope you like your counterpart! Heheheheheheh…**

**Thanks to everyone,  
I hope you all have enjoyed it.  
Cp**


	19. At the Moment(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**If I see one Lawyer saying that I own ANYTHING I'll have Insania and Vitam CLEANSE THEIR SOULS!**

* * *

Tony's POV

There was something going on…I just knew it.

Everyone was getting really pissed off. I already was, I knew that…and I admitted it (mentally) but…there was definitely something going on here.

I would bet…my car….on it that Loki was behind it.

I rubbed my temples as Thor, Steve, Fury, and Coulson all got in each other's faces, yelling about wars, and battles and other things that right now…I didn't care about.

"Will you all shut up for a minute and let me think!" I yelled, and thankfully, that got them all to pause and look at me.

"Thank you." I stated and continued to rub my temples….

"Jarvis scan everything on board for _any_ kind of energy output then cross reference it with every Database we have." I ordered as I tried to figure out what was going on.

Loki was playing something…he had a reason to be here. He wanted something…he needed to accomplish something.

Btu all he had managed to do since getting aboard was…

"Shit." I cursed as the pieces of the puzzle fell together.

Loki had managed to kill Pen, get Bruce out of the picture for the time being, AND made everyone else snapping at each other's throats.

"Just who do you think you are!?" Rogers demanded, "You aren't in charge!"

"Well, since you're all acting like CHILDREN I thought I'd step in." I stated coldly. "As for whom I am? I thought you knew that Rogers."

"Yeah, you're such a big man with that suit of armor. But take that away…and what's left?"

"I'm a genius, billionaire, philanthropist, and most importantly…I'm a father. Now… shut up and listen!" I snapped the last part out harshly.

Everyone paused, and I prided myself at my ability in quieting people.

"Now, you want something to tear apart with your teeth? Tear this apart. Loki is determined on ruling this world; he has the manpower and the means to do so. So why get caught? Why let hand himself over to his enemies unless he as an alternate motive.

"Now," I continued going into lecture/teacher mode. "Think about what he's accomplished since he showed up. He revealed Penny…and got her killed. Bruce is out of the picture, _and_ he has the rest of us more worried about ripping each other's throats out then paying attention.

"Have any of you noticed that all we've done is fight since we entered the room? What is it in here that is sparking all of this? Think; use your brains for once! who was working in here who had anger control issues, what could Loki possibly achieve by angering everyone!"

I threw my hands up as the tension started draining from the room and everyone started thinking. Finally!

"Jarvis, is there any energy readings coming from the staff?" I asked, and slowly, everyone's eyes widened as they realized what I was getting at.

"Yes sir, there are the Gamma readings that are nearly identical to the signatures of the Tesseract. Also, the Gamma is spiking and creating waves that are significantly similar to those Miss Penny can create to influence people." Jarvis replied and I cursed….

But on the other hand, I was happy that we had done tons of research into Pen's sparks and powers.

"What? You mean Loki's behind all of this!?" Rogers exclaimed in concern.

"Not all of it." I said shaking my head and narrowing my eyes in though. "But he influenced the wedges we already had between us. He wanted us separated, fighting one another so that we wouldn't be a threat."

"Genius." Fury muttered to himself quietly.

"What can we do about it?" Coulson asked me, realizing that at this point, I had the best idea of what was going on.

"Hmm…" I didn't reply but pulled out the small black clip on cube that was attached to my belt. This was the person shield that Penny and I had developed based on her shield.

"Jarvis, what are the odds of this being able to block the energies coming from the staff?" I asked the AI.

"What are you talking about now?" Rogers asked, but Thor quieted him.

"Let the man work." He said.

"Extremely likely sir," Jarvis replied.

I smirked as I flicked the shield on and it sprung to life, encompassing the shield.

Instantly, I calmed down…it was like I had been charged, and now…I wasn't. I couldn't even tell till it was gone.

"Well," I said with a smirk. "That's better."

All of the sudden, the computer started beeping. I pulled up the hologram and smirked, "Well, things are defiantly looking brighter…aren't they?"

"You located the Tesseract?" Thor asked as I pulled up the map, and zoomed in.

Everyone huddled closer, causing me to roll my eyes and expanded the hologram that was one of the perks. You could always make them bigger.

"I'm pulling up the info now…" I muttered to myself and my eyes narrowed as the system flickered.

"The Tesseract belongs on Asgard." Thor stated, but before he could say anything more, Jarvis' voice echoed loudly through the room.

"Sir, there is a…" Before Jarvis could finish the sentence, an explosion rocked the 'Carrier.

They systems flickered and flames erupted from an air vent, sending all of us flying back, Rogers and I were thrown through the glass walls and into the hallway.

Thankfully, my backup shield sprang to life, protecting me from most of the blast, aftershock, and glass shards but it still hurt as we impacted the glass and then the metal wall.

I bit my tongue to keep from screaming and I blinked rapidly trying to clear my vision. Thankfully, my vision cleared with the smoke, and as far as I could tell, the shield had protected me from harm.

I flicked the shield off as Rogers shifted to my right, there was no need for SHIELD and Rogers to know _all_ of the cards I have up my sleeves.

"Damn!" I exclaimed, giving into my frustration and temptation to curse, as I heard Rogers say a

"Now would be a good time to put on that suit!"

I rolled my eyes before taking off down the smoke filled corridor towards the hanger that the suit was in…this wasn't good.

* * *

"Coulson, listen, it's most likely Barton," I said as I raced through the halls. "Jarvis reports that they've taken out the third turbine. Now, getting that engine back on line is my mine priority. I can't fight with the suit inside… so I'll take care of that.

"This is probably where Loki's going to make his move. Keep your focus on him, but deal with Barton. Keep your heads, and don't let him mess with you…we don't need any more casualties."

"Who put you in charge?" I heard Rogers mutter and I rolled my eyes.

"Now's not the time." I said…he really did have bad timing.

"Coulson, initiate lockdown in the detainment sector then get to the armory!" I heard Fury exclaim through the com (Jarvis connected me to their com system). "Stark, I need you to keep us in the sky. We can't lose another engine."

"Already said I'm on it." I replied instantly…I really didn't like getting ignored.

"Rogers, get to engine three, I'll meet you there!" I exclaimed as we finally got to the cargo hold that had my suit…why couldn't my proto-type be done yet?

I pressed a button on my phone and the cargo holds wall retracted, showing my suit…oh, how glad I was that SHIELD was so paranoid…

Well, at the moment I anyway.

* * *

I snickered as I listened to Fury tear apart an agent for not using his head. Oh, okay…Fury's temper was funny was it wasn't directed at you.

"Stark I'm here!" I heard Rogers yell and rolled my eyes, took him long enough.

"About time!" I exclaimed as I flew down towards the giant hole in the side of the Carrier. "I need to get the superconductor cooling system back on line, or fixing the engine won't mater it'll blow itself up.

"Then I can work on dislodging the debris caught in the rotors," I muttered in thought as a holographic scan of the engine appeared on screen. "Rogers, I need you to access that engine control panel and tell me which relays are in the overload position."

My lips set in a line as I quickly started making repairs.

The engine was already overheating itself trying to spin, but because it was caught, it was over heating. The blast took out the cooling system and all of the maintenance access points. The first thing I had to do was get those systems back on line… we all were going to literally get blown out of the sky.

"Show time." I muttered, hoping that they were taking care of the problems inside.

* * *

Third POV  
Other Dimension

Mortem definitely wasn't expecting someone to grab him as soon as he appeared in Cor, or for that person to be his Sister Insania…

But then again, he shouldn't be surprised.

"What are you doing!?" He hissed in anger as the female Immortal let him go. "I don't have time for your games! Aequivalere's missing and I need to talk to…"

However, he paused as he saw the smirk on Insania's face.

"You did something." He stated with realization. "You're the reason that we couldn't sense Aequivalere's Soul…"

Insania said nothing a small lopsided smile just stayed on her face as she let her brother put the pieces together for himself.

"If you were really working for Fati…then I wouldn't be here. So that's out. You care about Aequivalere…that is obvious after all these years…so you took her Soul before we could restore her memories why?" Mortem asked.

Insania didn't reply, she just held up her hand, which sat the Youngest's Soul, white magik swirling around it.

"Your Cleansing it…but you don't have that power!" Mortem exclaimed in shock. "Besides, what are you cleansing it for! You can't be erasing her memories…"

Insania shook her head and said softly, "I'm merely helping my sister…like Mother asked."

Mortem's eyes widened and he took a step back in shock.

"Y…you've spoken with Mother?"

No one had spoken to…or even seen Mother in years. Not even Mortem and Vitam…who work with her the most because they handle Souls….hadn't had seen her.

Insania hesitated before nodding her head slowly an unsure look on her face.

Mortem didn't say a word as he stared at his younger sister. They had never gotten along, because usually when Insania played around too much he got stuck on overtime cleaning up the Souls after her.

"Well then…" Mortem sighed gazing down at his Bonded's Soul. "I'll leave you to it then."

There was a moment of silence before he added, "But…if you so much as modify _one _memory or change _one_ thing about her…you'll deeply regret it."

With that, Mortem vanished, his threat meaning nothing to the younger Immortal.

She had survived Fati for centuries…Mortem didn't scare her.

* * *

**OH MY!**

**I am soo so so so so sorry that I'm getting this up so close to midnight…I've been baking for the past few hours and literally just sat down. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter.**

**Mortem and Insania..and Tony stops letting people walk all over him!**

**Hehehe…**

**Oh well, let's see what happens next, shall we?  
I'm so glad so many of you figured (sorta) Insainia…she's based on my BFF and I would **_**never**_** make her evil…for a long period of time.**

**Thanks to everyone,  
Cp**


	20. The Game Changed(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing…I'm too tired to elaborate.**

* * *

Tony's POV

God, how I wished Penny was here.

Rogers was really starting…well…he was irritating me even _more._

He didn't know what he was doing, or what he was looking at, when I had him explain…piece by _freaking_ piece, what the surcet board looked like, and then when I explained to him…in _demeaning and small words_ how to fix it.

If Pen was here…then it would already be running and I wouldn't have to be doing this right now.

Somehow, Jarvis got disconnected from my suit, and so I was having to everything myself…

However, the one good thing that had happened in the last…twenty minutes or so was that Mortem had finally showed up.

He had only stayed for a moment, but he had appeared to me when I was slowly explaining to Rogers what to do.

He hadn't said a word, but one glance and the flickering of emotion in his eyes told me that there was a problem…but Penny was okay.

I had asked if one of her 'perks' were going to kick in, he just gave me a small half smile that I interpreted as 'hopefully' and he vanished.

Pen had explained a few months ago how there was a lot of things that her boyfriend wasn't allowed to talk about. But she had showed me how to read him well enough so I could get answers without him actually having to say anything.

That little visit had put my mind at ease…Pen was coming back…most likely.

I was able to focus more after that, and my patents with Rogers increased slightly. I was able to walk him through the repairs by picturing him as a small child who knew nothing about anything. It worked quite well.

"Well, it's done… did everything you said. What's next?" Rogers' asked cover the com as I blasted into the propeller section of the engine, and glared at the debris.

"I'm going to get the rotors clear, but this thing isn't going to reengage without a jumpstart. Rebooting the coolant drained the core, it's refilling but it's going to take time, time we don't have. I'm going in and pushing to get it spinning… once the debris is removed." I stated narrowing my eyes at the metal in front of me.

"You'll be torn to shreds if that thing gets up to full speed." Rogers stated with slightly concern in his voice.

"So now you care." I drawled and I could practically feel Rogers flinch. "Don't worry. I've survived worse."

"Stark…just because you lost your daughter doesn't mean that you should…." Rogers tried to say and I snapped back instantly.

"I don't have a death wish Rogers. Now, if you're done worrying about my mental stability….there should be a red lever by you. It'll slow the rotors down long enough for me to _avoid_ dying." I drawled rolling my eyes.

"See it." Rogers said instantly. "How do you know how all of this works anyway?"

I laughed, "Really? You haven't figured it out yet? Typical, Rogers…there's a reason I know this place then SHIELD and they practically live on this thing…got totally wasted about a year and a half ago…and bam this baby was born."

"Wait…are you telling me that you _made_ this thing?!" Rogers exclaimed in surprise.

"Well…the blueprints. SHIELD bought it when Stark Industries didn't want to build it. They made a few changes….like Loki's current cell…but this thing is one of my brain children." I stated "Now, stand by until you get my signal…then flip that switch."

"You know…I'm starting to wonder what everyone else is doing." Rogers commented as I started removing the large piece of metal from the rotors.

I snorted and muttered to myself, "I just hope that they don't screw up any more."

* * *

Third POV

Aequivalere's Soul was almost completely Cleansed…and soon it would be able to return, but Insania wasn't focused on the gold orb that was encompassed with silver at the moment.

No, she was sitting on a couch with a large thing of popcorn, watching, through a window into the Mortal World…everything that was happening.

Thor and Coulson had gone straight to check on Loki while Romanoff snuck away to deal with Barton. Barton was able to disable Jarvis by uploading a nasty virus into SHIELD's system. While the bug hadn't gotten rid of, or hurt the AI, it did render him occupied for some time.

The men tried to take the Bridge…and failed. Fury and Hill were able to disable them all very quickly.

Thor and Coulson weren't talking as they stalked towards Loki's cell…all of the commotion causing the trip to take longer then it should've.

However, it wasn't Coulson, Thor, Fury, or even Tony Insania was paying attention to.

It was her favorite person in this dimension, Bruce Banner.

If anyone had been with Insania when she started laughing, they would've freaked out and fled for their lives.

However, she was alone…so no one had the warning.

* * *

Bruce's POV

I groaned as I slowly came back to consciousness. **(AN: Did you all really think that I would kill him off?!)**

Even for the Other Guy…that fall had been brutal. Not only had we fallen quite a few hundred feet… but we had also tried to protect Pen…

How did I know this? Well, since Hulk and I had started working together our memories no longer fought…so I remembered more.

I groaned as I realized that not only was I stark naked, but also, I was in a middle of a field, in God knows what country…and Pen's body was nowhere in sight.

I had to bite my lip to keep myself from cursing and I felt Hulk send me a silent 'sorry' from the back of my mind. But I wasn't irritated with him…I just had lost my best friend…and probably ruined the new friendship I had with her father.

I slowly got to my feet and looked around, trying to see if there was any kind of structure around where I might find some clothes.

Spotting a barn in the distance, I slowly, achingly, made my way towards it.

* * *

Was it just me…or did Fate just hate me?

The barn hadn't been empty…like I had been hoping…and its owner wasn't too pleased with my sudden appearance.

It took about fifteen minutes to convince the elderly man that no, I wasn't a druggy, and no, I wasn't trying to mug him.

In this time period, I realized that I was back in the good ol' US…on a farm on Connecticut state line to be specifically.

Realizing that I had no way to contact _anyone_ on the Helicarrier...(it wasn't like I had Stark's cell number) I decided that I would get to Stark Tower…and if SHIELD found me before then…then great! If not…eh, oh well.

Five minutes later, I was dressed in the farmer's (Mr. O'nelly) dead son's clothes.

I had tried not to think about that as I slowly made my way out of the barns bathroom. Apparently, when the guy's son had died he moved all of his things out to the barn for storage.

My eyes widened as I saw a motorcycle leaning against the far wall…

"_Well,"_ I said to Hulk, _"Let's see if we can get our hands on that bad boy…hmm?"_

I swore that the Other Guy laughed at me as I went over to the farmer…

Hey, it wasn't my fault!

* * *

In the end, I did manage to convince the guy to give me a bike, and in a very short amount of time I was speeding off down the road towards NY…

Why did I have such a bad feeling about this?

* * *

Third POV  
Random Dimension

Insania frowned as she saw two things happen at once, Thor and Coulson entered the holding cell…and the Cleansing finished.

"Well, well, well, sister dearest…" Insania muttered to herself, "Are you back to normal yet?"

The bright gold orb just pulsed before Insania snatched it up. Her hands glowed briefly, before her mind connected with her Sister's consciousness.

* * *

Third POV  
with Coulson and Thor

"Be ready for anything." Coulson warned the Asgardian as they unlocked the room.

"Of course, I have long become used to my brother's tricks." Thor stated with nod and the two entered the large room.

"Well," Loki stated with an evil smirk. "Look what the cat's dragged in. Hello brother."

* * *

Tony's POV

I heard a commotion over the com as I finished cutting the large piece of metal.

"What's going on over there?" I called as I blasted the metal out of the way.

"Have some unexpected…and uninvited…company." Rogers replied almost instantly.

"Take care of it." I state as I got behind one of the rotors and engaged my thrusters to full capacity. "I still need you to flip the switch."

"Don't worry." Rogers replied, but the notice in the background caused me to worry.

I sure the hell didn't want to die here…that would be a pathetic way to go.

"Stark! We're dropping out of the sky!" Rogers exclaimed over the com after a few rounds of gunfire.

"Yeah, I sorta noticed that!" I stated back and pushed my thrusters harder. "I'm working on it."

Metal grinded against metal as the rotor slowly started to spin…this might take a few minutes.

* * *

Third POV  
with Thor and Coulson

Just as the two entered the chamber, the whole Helicarrier gave a hue lurch. Coulson grabbed onto the wall for balance while Thor simply shifted his balance.

Their eyes widened as the glass door to Loki's cell slid open soundlessly, and he stepped out with a smirk.

"Someone doesn't look too happy to see me." Loki laughed as Thor screamed in rage and charged the black haired man.

Just as Thor went to tackle Loki, his form wavered and Thor fell into Loki's cell.

He snarled as he realized that he had been tricked, but glad that Loki had over looked Coulson. That had allowed the man to flick on something at his belt, and slowly move to the other side of the room.

The game had just changed…and now…the way it was played needed to change as well.

* * *

**Half an hour to midnight…god this it cutting it close.**

**I am really really sorry…**

**But not much I can say about it. I was just tired, busy, and lazy today.**

**Anyway…things are heating up and moving along. Pen should either be in the next chapter for the one following that.**

**Not my best chapter…I admit…but I wasn't sure what else to do.**

**Hey, its late…cut me some slack.**

**Anyway…I still have to get up early in the morning (even though it is a weekend… :(...****) so I am going to go crash.**

**Hope you all are enjoying it.  
Cp**


	21. I'm Gonna Deck Him(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**JK, Disney, and Marvel own it all…so don' bug me or I'll feed you to my pet dragon. He eats annoying people who bug me. ;)**

* * *

Third POV  
Coulson and Thor

While Thor was berating himself for falling for one of Loki's oldest tricks, Coulson was waiting for a time to strike. When one was dealing with a being much more powerful then yourself, you ; wait for the perfect moment to strike…if you want to live; and Coulson very much did.

"Are you ever _not_ going to fall for that?" Loki asked with an amused smirk. "That was always one of your…more amusing traits."

Thor have his brother an annoyed glare but said, "Tis one of my faults. That has not changed since childhood."

Thor always fell for the illusion trick, even though he knew he should've figured it out centuries ago…he always did.

"You don't have to get so angry." Loki stated smugly as Thor tried to break the container with his hammer.

The resilient glass shook, and cracked a bit. But it otherwise held against his attack. However, the giant claws that held the cell shook and Thor froze, looking around him with narrowed as eyes as Loki laughed.

"Anger was always another of your faults." Loki stated as he strolled, his smirk never leaving his face, towards the control panel. "You know, the human's think us immortal…they are so ignorant in the workings of the universe. But I am curious; your anger towards me seems to be much greater than before. What could I have possibly done, in my short stay here, that has angered you so?"

Loki looked at his brother with a raised eyebrow but Thor only blinked it response, before his face became a cool mask.

"They are still young, and are not ready for the knowledge that the universe holds." Thor stated and Coulson looked at the two Asgardians with narrowed eyes and a thoughtful look. "Once again brother, your actions have caused harm…and now death to befall someone who I hold as a friend."

Loki sneered but before he could say anything, Thor continued. "But you are in the wrong brother. You know what exists in this world; you are the most attuned to them. _I _am curious as to why you did not sense the power that I did. The same power that _we _grew up around…the same power that practically raised us. Do not recall that feeling? Has it been so long that you have forgotten the feeling of Immortality wrapped within Mortality?

"Aye, my frustration with you has grown brother. If you recall, there is only one person in existence that fits the description…and that person just happens to be a friend of your daughter. I am surprised, brother. For you seem to have forgotten your own flesh and blood on your tirade.

"Answer me this. If family truly means nothing to you…are you content with your daughter hating you for the rest of time because of some misguided actions?" Thor knew he had dealt a low blow, but he thought it was the only way to break through the shields surrounding his brother's mind.

For a moment, it seemed to work, his eyes flickered and his stance shifted slightly…before all of the sudden it was like a switch had been flipped. A cold hard mask settled into place and Loki's sneer came back full force. It was like all of Thor's words had been erased from his mind.

"Should we test how 'immortal' we really are? Prove the humans wrong? Oh…how they hate being wrong." Loki stated with a smirk and Thor's hope for his brother vanished.

He had a feeling something larger was afoot.

Sadly, that was when Coulson decided enough was enough and revealed himself.

"Move away from the consult." Coulson ordered, aiming the large, butt ugly Phase 2 weapon at Loki…

Thor wondered if he had been carrying that the whole time…but put it out of his mind.

'What was the mortal thinking, challenging his brother like that?' Thor asked himself.

"You know, I have a better way of testing your mortality rate." Coulson stated as he calmly stepped forward, lifting the large gun on steroids into a more comfortable position on his shoulder.

"You see, there have been many of us around here who have wanted to test these things out on an Asgardian for months. We made the prototype after you sent the Destroyer…which by the way isn't a very original name at all." Coulson stated and Loki was eyeing the man, assessing him.

"I don't know what it does," He admitted with a smirk as he turned it on and it powered up with a high-pitched whirl, "But I'd love to find out."

It all happened so fast, that Coulson wasn't even sure what happened.

One second he was taunting Loki (okay, maybe being around the Stark family had rubbed off on him) the next, he was behind him.

There was a distinctive 'zing'ing noise like metal colliding with metal and Coulson was thrown forward.

He looked shocked to find that a shield, much like Penny's had appeared around him. He instantly realized that Stark must've had something to do with it.

There was a loud snapping sound and Coulson's attention was drawn back towards the green clad Asgardian.

Standing there, with a firm grip on Loki's arm, was the same black haired purple eyed girl that had showed up right before Bruce lost control.

"Ah, ah, ah, Father." She sneered and Loki's eyes widened. "It is not his time."

Her eyes flickered to Coulson and his shield before they softened slightly. "It seems that my intervention wasn't completely necessary…I must say. Those Starks make my job so much easier."

Loki opened his mouth, and the staff now in his hand pulsed, before Coulson snapped out of his shock.

He lifted the large Phase 2 weapon, and without even sitting up, fired it right at the duo.

Hel, apparently, had sensed his actions because she vanished right as the blast slammed into her father, sending him flying back and threw a few walls.

As the bright blast from the Phase 2 weapon hit him, a blast of blue magic flew from Loki's staff and slammed into the consult.

Almost instantly, Thor who was still in the container, was released from the 'Carrier…into a deadly free fall.

"So…" Coulson muttered to himself as he slowly sat up. "That's what it does."

With a whirl of shadows, Hel reappeared, and after glancing between Coulson who was only slightly bruised, the gaping hole that just held her uncle, and the smoking hole that used to be her father, she shrugged.

"I think my work here is done."

"Aren't you going to stay and help?" Coulson asked as he got to my feet.

"Nope." Hel smirked popping the "p".

"What about Thor? Aren't you going to help him?" Coulson asked as he eyed the blue sky shown weirdly.

Hel looked thoughtful for a moment, before shaking her head with a smile.

"Naw, he's fine. Besides….I've got work to do." Hel said with a wave before vanishing.

Coulson, after the rather strange girl left, instantly approached the smoldering gap, only to find Loki gone.

Stifling a groan, Coulson looked around as he quickly made his way to the brig. Fury needed to know the latest developments.

* * *

Tony's POV

I snarled as I took out all my remaining anger that had boiled over the last two days, into spinning the rotor.

"Sir, my systems are back online, as well as SHIED's. Shall I inform Director Fury of this development." Jarvis asked and I barely bothered to reply.

"Just keep the com. channel open, get engine one back online, and be smug towards the guy…will you?" I asked though I knew Jarvis would do anything I asked.

"Of course sir. Rebooting engine one now." Jarvis instantly replied.

The change was almost instantaneous. Instead of the Helicarrier falling from the side because of its double engine loss, turbine 1 rebalanced the weight and caused engine 3 to start running on its own power.

"Rogers hit that switch!" I yelled as the blades started to spin faster and faster.

I poured more juice into the repulsors, I had to keep up…or I would be torn to shreds.

"I NEED A MINEUT HERE!" Rogers shouted through the com.

"Well, I might not have a minuet…so take your time!" I exclaimed with heavy sarcasm.

If I died…I would annoy Mortem till he let me come back to at least punch Rogers in the face one last time.

* * *

Third POV  
Bridge

"Everyone into collision positions!" Fury yelled, gripping his monitors tightly just as the Helicarrier stabilized itself.

"What on earth!" One random agent exclaimed as Hill reported,

"Sir! Engine 1 is back online! And it looks like Stark is getting engine 3 to stabilize!"

"But how…" Fury started to ask, but before he could continue Jarvis interrupted.

"All systems are back online. The security breach in the lock downs has been dealt with, and I believe that your crew's lives are no longer in danger. Are you glad that I am in control now? _Sir_?"

It was all anyone could do…stare opened mouthed in shock.

Then Fury realized that Stark had built the AI…of course it would sometimes sound like him.

Oh god…a computer with Starks personality…they were doomed.

However, that thought was pushed out of Fury's mind as Coulson stumbled into the bridge with a dark look on his face…and the gears started turning in Fury's mind.

* * *

Tony's POV

It was only thirty seconds (after smirking at Jarvis' reply to Fury) that my worsening condition became apparent.

"Lever NOW ROGERS!" I yelled as my eyes widened I boosted the power, but my grip on the turbine slipped…

I wasn't pushing any more. I was trapped inside.

Shit, shit, and more shit.

Another rotor slammed into me from behind, and I was forced into an eagle spread position by the pressure.

My mind did the math and probabilities instantly, even if I didn't want it to.

"Oh…not good…" I muttered as I realized my predicament.

"ROGERS!" I yelled, man…I swore I was going through with that thought of coming back and decking Rogers even if I had to bribe Pen's boyfriend to do it.

Then, the pressure increased and I was forced beneath the turbine, I closed my eyes as I was thrown, smashed, hit and run over, over and over again in a circle.

I bit my lip to keep silent, knowing that the com was open and that if I made a sound…everyone would hear it.

Oh, I was _sooo_ decking Rogers, wither I died or not.

Then, with a loud clang I was thrown clear out of the turbine…YES! he had finally hit that fucking switch!

However, it wasn't the time to be happy about that. My suit was a wreck. System failure alarms and warning flashed across the screen, I could barely keep myself steady in the air.

"Sir," Jarvis stated in my ear, "It would appear that the Captain is in some need of assistance."

"Of course he is." I muttered to myself but turned and charged off towards the wound in the 'Carrier's side.

It took me less than a second, but it felt nice literally slamming into a bad guy…it wasn't a bad way to crash either.

But I was _never_ going to _admit _that to _anyone_!

* * *

**DID YOU GUYS SERIOUSLY THINK I WAS GOING TO KILL COULSON OFF? LIKE WITH HULK...why would I kill off all of the awesome people?!**

**Huh…I seriously thought that these scenes would take half a chapt….guess I was wrong. So then, because this one came out longer… you have to wait another chapter before Pen gets brought back in (vaguely) sorry, but what can you do?**

**I couldn't help but add that scene with Jarvis...it was too funny...not to mention it was a fluffy little baby plot bunny that wouldn't leave me alone!**

**Hope you all are enjoying it,  
I'm working on getting another ****beta ****(my other two are like…gone…I've had some changes with them in the past month…which is sad but oh well…)**

**Thanks for everything,  
Cp**


	22. Within the Mind(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**If anyone says I own something, that Disney/Marval and JK own…well…I'll make sure that your cast into the darkest, most horrifying corner of Hel' realm.**

**You have been warned.**

* * *

Tony's POV

I wasn't happy that Loki got away, but I knew that he wouldn't stay away for long.

My eyes narrowed as Coulson's voice echoed through the com.

"The god rabbited."

"Just stay awake." I heard Fury sated calmly, and instantly wondered what was going on.

Thankfully, for me, I hadn't taken off my suit yet so I said, "Jarvis, pull up Coulson's vitals."

"Right away sir." Jar replied.

I practically growled as I realized what Fury was doing, and instantly activating the removal possess of the suit I stepped out.

"You know Fury, I really must wonder if you're sane. I mean, I know that we make a crappy team, but are you seriously trying to fake Coulson's death to _motivate_ us?" I drawled and stalked towards the bridge, a dark look on my face.

"What?!" I head Rogers and Romanoff exclaim.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Fury denied but I could hear the small tone of uncertainty in my voice.

"Oh I think you do." I growled "I don't see why you are playing this card now. Considering that you already have _most _of us motivated to take care of Loki…and personally, I don't see what the big issue is. In case you have _forgotten_ Loki's actions, along with your people's caused my daughter to _die_. She meant a lot to a lot of people here; me, Coulson, Thor, Bruce. So I'm sorry, I think we have all the _motivation _we need."

Fury didn't respond but I heard the other members of our little 'team' mutter under their breaths. There, that was done.

One problem down…a billion more to go.

* * *

Rogers and I were the first ones back onto the bridge. We settled down at the table and didn't talk, both lost in our own thoughts.

I was pissed that Fury was still trying to manipulate us, and I was annoyed with Jarvis for not finding out who had shot Penny.

_Just find the culprit._

I typed to Jarvis from my phone, it was better to be quiet about this then aloud.

_Of course sir._

Jarvis' reply was instant, but I sighed…this whole thing was a mess. Man, I wanted Pen to be here. She could fix this so much better than I could ever.

"We're dead in the sky." Fury said as he stalked into the bridge. "Our communications, the location of the Cube, Banner, Thor…I've got nothing for you."

"Are you saying that you lost of your intel?" I asked, looking up at fury in shock.

The director gave me a hard look but sighed, "The bug that Barton planted practically wiped our systems clean. There's nothing…"

"Then it's a good thing I have backups." I stated as I pulled my phone back open.

"Jarvis," I said and I swore I saw Fury's eyebrow twitch.

"Yes Sir?" the AI replied, and quite a few people looked around in worry.

"Load the latest copy of SHIELD's systems back into their mainframe. It seems that they dealt with the virus in a less effective way then you did." I stated and smirked at Fury's face.

"Actually sir, there is nothing wrong with SHIELD's systems. I am still cleaning out the bug, so they are currently locked down. I should have every system cleaned and restored in less than an hour." The AI replied instantly and Fury's face fell in shock.

"Are you telling me that _you're _the one keeping our systems locked up?!" Fury exclaimed glaring at the ceiling.

"Well, if you would like me to give you your systems back now, I can. But you run the risk of the virus taking total control of the ship. Now, do you still want me out?" Jarvis drawled…he actually drawled.

I wondered if Jarvis was mad at SHIELD…because I had never heard him act like this before.

"…I think I had that coming…" Fury muttered as the AI fell silent.

"You did." I stated. I heard Rogers snort on the other side of the table, but I ignored him. I had decided that it would probably be best not to break his nose until after this mess with Loki was over…bigger fish to fry and all of that.

"We were going to build an arsenal with the Tesseract." Fury stated pacing back and forth, "I wasn't placing all of my chips on that though…because even though it fell through, I was playing something even riskier."

"You were playing us." I stated and Rogers looked at me in surprise. "You were waiting for the right time, and then you would try to get the Avengers Initiative back together without anyone else realizing it."

"Yes…that was what I was going for." Fury admitted with a sigh. "Sadly…things didn't go as planned."

"Things rarely do." I stated, thinking about all of the scraps that Pen and I had gotten ourselves in.

"I agree with Stark…" Rogers muttered looking thoughtful.

"We were hoping that you all would be able to work together, and together fight the battles that we cannot." Fury sighed and rubbed his temples.

"You see," I said slowly, "That's where your plan failed. You tried too hard to control everything in the start. We all come from different backgrounds, and our personalities clash…the situation just wasn't right."

Fury nodded and a stone mask slipped into place as he said, "We still need you…we still need heroes."

I clenched my jar and slid out of my chair, with a dark look on my face I stalked from the room.

Hero's? heroes? Ha, we weren't heroes. We were a recipe for disaster. Besides, what kind of hero was I? I let my own daughter get killed.

I wasn't a hero.

* * *

Third Person,  
Different Dimension

_Insania's mind connected with the consciousness of her Sister, and instantly they were in a mind scape._

_There as a large dark lake to their left, and a dark forest on the edge of her vision. There was a small hut by the edge of the woods, it stood out against the dreary landscape._

_Insania turned to her right and looked at the magnificent castle that stood, battle torn and crumbing against a grey sky._

"_Depressing, I know." Insania turned to see Aequivalere looking up at the castle with a sad look on her face._

"_I remember when this whole place was alive, when this place was a sanctuary...a safe heaven." Insania said nothing just letting her sister talk._

"_There used to be so much life here…I watched it all fade." Aequivalere's face took on a pained look and something twitched inside of Insania. Her Sister never talked about her First Life…not even to Mortem._

"_I watched my whole world fade." She continued still gazing up at the castle. "Century after century, generation after generation; I watched as friends and family grew old and died. I watched as the Mundane world discovered the Magical…I watched, frozen in time, as they destroyed themselves._

"_For so long I thought that my powers were a curse…that I was doomed to forever fallow the same path, never having a family…never having a real life." Aequivalere paused and turned her bright, vivid green eyes to Insania's._

"_But now…now I know better. Now I can see how it was supposed to be this way. My existence isn't a curse, and I'm not here to serve anyone else." Aequivalere's voice hardened and a grim smile appeared._

"_I may have been blind for the past Millennia, and I may have suffered greatly from the hands of Fati…but now I realize, that I'm glad I made that deal." _

_Insania was confused, Aequivalere had never mentioned a deal with Fati before._

"_What kind of deal, sister dearest?" She asked her voice as soft as the wind._

"_In my last Life…I grew tired. I didn't want to continue. My Duties had worn me down…and I admit…I was in a bad place." Her eyes drifted back up towards the castle as she continued, "Fati appeared to me one day, she said she could help…as I had served her well over the years. We made a deal, she would let me have 16 years without Duties…she would keep me Mortal…let me have a break…if I would let her have some of my memories."_

_Insania gasped, and Aequivalere's eyes drifted back towards hers. "I was a fool….she has been taking my memories for centuries…to keep me under her control. _

"_I owe you so much, Sister…when you cleansed my Soul, you took away the restrictions that Fati spend lifetimes creating, you called all of my Memories back…you made me whole." _

"_Well, let's say we are even now." Insania gave her sister a soft smile, remembering what the younger Immortal had done for her._

_Aequivalere chuckled but didn't reply._

_A soft wind blew through the mind scape and Aequivalere's eyes snapped open, the vibrant green orbs practically glowing._

"_You need to send me back, Sister; it is time to Awaken…finally." _

"_But…you'll still be in your Mortal Form, what about creating your Immortal one." Insania asked slightly confused._

_Aequivalere gave her Sister a small smug smile. "It matters not… not now that I'm free."_

_Insania nodded still confused but left the mind scape anyway…she had forgotten how confusing her Sister could be._

_Aequivalere started up at the castle a wistful look in her eye, before she too turned on her heal and left the mindscape._

_Hogwarts Castle the only thing left from the Youngest's first life…now only existed in her mind._

_It always would be her first home…and that's why, she had created her mindscape off of it….so that no matter what life, no matter where she was…she would never forget her first home._

_Aequivalere's voice echoed across the once-school grounds, rustling the trees and sending a draft through the castle as she thought._

'_I will deal with you, Fati…Sister dear…and you shall answer for everything you have done. Sooner or later.'_

* * *

**So, people, how'd you like it? Okay…it was a lot less vague then I thought. **** but that's good for you!**

**And looky! it's _not_ almost midnight for me! I'm very happy about that! XD**

**Pen really comes back next chapt, and things seriously start to heat up.**

**I don't know why I'm having Jarvis be so awesome…but it's fun!**

**Thanks for everything, everyone  
Cp**


	23. NOT Fati's Pawn(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**The girl writing this story owns nothing. So go legally harass someone else.**

* * *

Tony's POV

I scowled as I looked over the empty Cell that Loki had been occupying only an hour before. I couldn't really leave, even though I really wanted to.

"Did she have a boyfriend?" Rogers asked and I snorted….oh now he was trying to connect with me? Over my dead (possibly) daughter…that was rich.

"Why are you asking me this now?" I asked of him, not bothering to look his way.

"…I don't know…I suppose it just hit me how much you've lost…" Rogers stated and I whipped around and glared at him.

"I don't need your pity." I spat and narrowed my eyes at him…I was still contemplating decking him.

"You don't have it." Rogers stated as he slowly walked over. "You have my sympathies."

I rolled my eyes and turned away. "Didn't seem that way earlier." I drawled quietly, I couldn't get her pale face out of my mind…

Rogers sighed and I heard him shuffle around. "I…I really don't know what came over me."

"Loki." I stated, even though I hated the fact that I was defending him.

"Perhaps." Rogers said, sounding like he knew he was treading on thin ice.

We were silent for a moment, before I said, "She did."

"Huh?" Rogers responded and I rolled my eyes.

"She did have a boyfriend." I repeated using a whole sentence this time.

"Oh," Rogers sighed and he slowly approached me.

"Her mother?" he asked and my heart clenched thinking about Evanna…not now…

"Dead," I managed to choke out. "Hadn't seen her in years…didn't even know Pen existed until she became my PA."

This surprised Rogers as he stated, "She became your secretary? But she was just a kid."

I rolled my eyes again, he sounded so much like Pepper right there.

"True…" I admitted she was just a kid. "But she was a brilliant kid none the less. Besides…she was my second PA, so I didn't have her doing everything."

"You're going to have to explain this to me sooner or later." Rogers said extremely confused. "I'm sorry."

I snorted but didn't reply.

"She didn't use her head." I muttered to myself as I clenched my phone tightly, trying to block out the face that would be staring back up at me from the screen.

"With what? Talking to Loki? You're the one who let her come along." Rogers stated and I gave him another death glare.

"I didn't let her do anything!" I snapped and clenched my teeth together in anger. "But I didn't try to stop her."

Rogers sighed and said, "She sounds like she was a good girl." When I said nothing he continued, "Sounds like she was a lot like you. Stubborn, a smart alic…"

I spun around on my heel and stalked towards the exit. I didn't need to hear him going off on my daughter again.

"…brilliant…there was nothing you could've done." I froze as his voice drifted over me.

"What?" I exclaimed softly narrowing my eyes at him as I slowly turned around.

"If she was anything like you," Rogers continued, "Then there was nothing you couldn't done. I doubt she would've let you."

"I should've stopped her…I shouldn't have let her walk out of that lab…I should've protected her!" I snarled at myself, momentarily forgetting that Rogers was there.

"Tony, its Pen…she wouldn't have let you."

We both turned around to see Coulson entering the hold.

"Rogers' right…she's too stubborn. She's too much like you." Coulson continued and I felt the walls around my heart (which had been strengthened by Mortem's short visit) started to crumbled.

"Just leave me alone." I muttered and glared at both men. I didn't need this.

"Stark, we need you to pull yourself together; we have to deal with Loki…" Rogers started but Tony continued.

"I my fucking daughter is DEAD don't you _dare _tell me to pull it together!" I thundered and glared at Rogers as Coulson sighed.

"I know this is your first time losing a soldier…" This time, it was glares from both Coulson and I that silenced the man.

"We are _not_ soldiers! She was a _kid_! _My_ kid!" I snarled and I saw Coulson shaking his head out of the corner of my eye.

"I'm not doing this for Fury, I'm not doing this for you, or for Coulson, or for anyone." I stated coldly and I saw Coulson shift nervously, "I'm doing this, because my _daughter _told me we should. That Loki needed to be taken care of. No more, no less.

"And after I take care of him, I'm gonna find the person who shot my daughter, and one way or another, she's going to pay." I snarled, and I say Coulson's eyes widened as I said 'she' I wondered if he would put it together.

"I'm not doing it for him either. Fury has the same blood on his hands as Loki does. But right now, we have more important things to deal with. We have to put that behind us…all of it." Rogers testified.

I sighed and closed my eyes…maybe I would still punch him.

"Now, Loki still needs a power source. If you can put together a list…" Rogers continued but this time it was Coulson who interrupted.

"Rogers, perhaps you should…" Coulson said but I interrupted.

"He's made it personal." I snarled glaring at him. "You all have. You don't need to tell me what I need to do!"

"That's not the point!" Rogers stated and I glared at him again, he was an idiot.

"That was the point…that was Loki's point. He wanted to get to us. He unknowingly did with Penny, he tried to with Coulson…come one it's as clear as day and no one has figured this out yet? He hit us all right where it matters, where he knew it would affect us the most. Why?

"We would still be alive, so what would it matter? To tear us apart, Rogers, I have said this!" I exclaimed, trying to get the other men on the same page.

"Divide and conquer…" Coulson stated in confusion.

"Yeah, that's great and all, but it doesn't seem like his MO." Rogers stated and I rolled my eyes.

"His MO…Rogers, this _is _his MO! He's messing with us, playing us; he's been doing so from the start! He rattles our cages gets us all furious at him, why? So we'd go after him. He wants to beat us; but he wants to be seen doing it.

"He wants an audience; he want's everyone to witness his power! He wants an ego booster like none other!" I exclaimed and finally Roger's face lightened in comprehension.

"Yeah…I saw his act in Germany." Rogers said and I nodded briefly at him.

"We all did…but that was just the previews, a taste of what is to come…this, this is his opening act, the big deal. He wants to have the audience captivated…" I started pacing like I did when my brain was on a roll, ranting about Penny had let Loki's actions retake the front of my mind…and finally there was time to spew it all out for them to see.

"A full time drama queen." Coulson muttered mostly to himself but I nodded.

"Exactly!" I exclaimed and Coulson stepped forward, he was the only one out of the two who was used to my sudden rants.

"Flowers, paradise, trophies, parties, he wants it all. He wants to be worshiped; he wants everyone to know his name. He wants a memorable monumental, towering sky high with his name plastered on the…." I froze as the other part of my brain caught it.

"Son of a bitch." I stated as I unfroze.

"This is not good." Coulson said as he too realized what I had realized. "We have his location…."

"What? Where?" Rogers asked, still not being able to connect the pieces.

"Stark Tower." Coulson stated as he activated his earpiece and started relaying everything to Fury.

I didn't move, my mind still spinning a million miles an hour as both Rogers and Coulson sped off towards the bridge.

I shook my head and made to follow, but something stopped me.

A subtle shift in the shadows, a slight drop in the temperature, and I spun around to see Mortem standing behind me.

A large grin like no other stretched across his face as his bright silver eyes danced.

"Mortem?" I asked, wondering…hoping…that he was here for the reason I thought he was.

"Is she…" I couldn't continue but his simple nod and smile were the only confirmation I needed.

Relief spread through me like warm water, or Pen's sparks, and I almost jumped for joy. Pen was alive! Oh god…Pen was alive!

"Is she okay?!" I asked my voice barely above a whisper but it echoed throughout the room.

_She will be_ Mortem wrote with sparks above his head, and signed (I had been learning).

"Thank you." I said sincerely and Mortem shifted slightly.

…_It isn't me who you should be thanking_

I could tell that it was annoying him greatly for having to admit that but I didn't point that out to him.

"Who?" I asked, confused. Hel didn't have the power (not if Mortem was her boss) and Insania…well…I actually had no idea about her, she was a wild card.

_That she is._ Mortem agreed with my statement and I rolled my eyes at him. He always knew what I was thinking when it mattered. _But…it turned out to be a good thing._

My eyes widened as I realized what he was implying.

"Are you saying that _Insania_ saved my daughter." Mortem nodded and his face darkened slightly as he replied,

_More than you know._ With that depressing thought Mortem vanished and I set my jaw.

I was determined to take care of Loki…then I would deal with _her_. No one messed with my family.

'Mortem is a great son in law…' I froze instantly and horror swept through me.

"Did I seriously just think that?!"

No!

* * *

**(was going to cut it off there but…eh, you guys deserve some Penny XD)**

Penny's POV  
Unknown place

I wanted to groan as my head pounded and my body slowly crawled back to life for the…I lost count.

Mortem had shown up in my mindscape after Insania had tried to bring me back. Apparently, because my body was still dependent on the Arc (that was broken) they had to fix that before I would be able to wake up.

So, for the past hour or so, I was drawn to and pushed out of my body like….over twenty times while Mortem and Insania fixed my Arc.

Oh, how I wished that I could fix it…but that was pretty hard when you're still dead.

Usually, when I Awaken, all of my memories (or the ones that _Fati_ hadn't _stolen_) slammed into my brain at once, leaving me with a splitting headache and confused for a few days.

However, because of the Cleansing that Insania did, and the fact that I remembered _everything_ before I was brought back…it was a lot less painful.

I truly did remember everything.

My First Life, in which I had so many titles…so many expectations…I had been the Boy-Who-Lived, the Man-Who-Concurred, the Man-Who-Changed-Everything, I had been the 'Master' of Death. I had been Harry Potter.

My Second Life, where I was literally the middle of everything, with nowhere to belong, a mixture of living and dead…when I truly realized that I was Balance.

Every life, wither Human, Asgardian, or something else entirely…I remembered them all. Every friend, every enemy, and before I Bonded with Mortem…every lover would forever exist in my mind.

I could now remember the arguments with Fati, questioning my purpose here, trying to remove Fati's blind fold…but then she would erase my mind in my next Life…and I would be back under her control.

I remember finding Insania, alone and broken in a far off Dimension, betrayed and tricked by Fati…I remember helping her, being there for her, healing her.

I remembered being sister, a brother, a friend, a hero. I had been so many things, male, female, on one side…or the other.

To tell you the whole story would take too long.

But that didn't matter at the moment.

My energy hummed at my touch and my Soul and Duties sang with pleasure, I felt so clean, so pure…so me, after my Cleansing.

I was Awake, I was Aequivalere, I was Balance….

And I was **not** Fati's pawn.

* * *

"Who is she?" I heard a deep voice ask and I knew that voice…how did I know that voice…

"I do not know, but she seems…familiar."

That voice…that voice I knew. From many lifetimes ago, an old friend who I thought I would never see again.

My heart leaped as my Core finally completely caught, I sat up with a gasp.

My bright green, Avada Kedavra eyes flashed open.

* * *

**Hehehe…I just had to add that part…who do you think Pen's with? If anyone guesses right they get a chapter dedicated to them! OR if you guess who shot Penny and get it right you get a chapter!**

**Anyway, I want to thank everyone who's followed me and stuff, and I'm sorry there's not a lot of Pen…be glad I didn't cut it off though!**

**Hope you are enjoying it,  
Cp**


	24. Not the Best Plan(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I really don't know what to tell you, if you think I own anything then you're just delusional…Marvel, Disney and JK own it all.**

**THIS CHAPTER IS DEDICATED TO "AERYUM" AND "ABY14A" WHO WERE THE FIRST PEOPLE TO GET WHO SHOT PEN RIGHT!**

* * *

Tony's POV

It was with a lighter heart that we all suited up, well, my heart was lighter anyway.

I hadn't said anything to anyone, not even Coulson when he asked me if I was alright, discreetly and quietly. Which I was thankful for, but I still didn't say anything.

I wanted so badly to punch Natasha…or yell at her, but I restrain myself, just like I had for the last hour or so since I found out that it was she who shot Penny.

Rogers came back with both SHIELD agents (Romanoff and Barton) in tow. I raised my eyebrow at Barton but didn't comment.

Jarvis had let me know that he was back to normal because Romanoff had almost smashed his head in. My words, not his.

Coulson had decided to stay on the Helicarrier, and keep us up to date on the status of everything.

I suited up as Rogers, Barton, and Romanoff went to go commandeer a jet.

I knew that if Fury wanted them to stay, we wouldn't be able to leave (well, it's debatable wither or not Fury would be able to keep me captive…eh,) so the lack of his response sent the clear message that this is what he wanted.

I took off into the sky, glad to be out of the metal deathtrap hanging in the sky; Romanoff's jet flying on my tail.

"Game on." I muttered to myself as we headed off towards New York.

Loki was annoying.

* * *

My suit was barely able to fly by the time I got to NY. The damage from the engine's rotors had just gotten worse as I used the suit and flew into New York.

I had to hold back a curse as the repulsors flickered once again, causing me to lose a few feet.

"Sir, I attempted to shut down the Arc Reactor, but the device is already self-sustaining." Jarvis reported and I scowled, but otherwise didn't reply.

I had suspected that.

I sighed as I spotted Selvig, with lots of equipment, on my roof. Too late to stop that…

"Shut it down, Dr. Selvig." I stated, hoping he would take it as an order.

"Stark!" He exclaimed in surprise as he spun around, "You're too late! She can't be stopped now."

She? What did he mean by 'she' I had a feeling that he wasn't talking about the Tesseract.

The top of the device, meant to channel the wormhole started spinning.

"She's showing us a whole new world…a whole new Universe…so many things are now clear!" Selvig's voice was starting to creep me out, so, I charged up a blast and ignoring the other part of my brain, fired.

That was a mistake.

A shield, stronger than the one I had created based on Pen's sprung to life around the Tesseract, and with a loud backlash, Selvig and I were thrown backwards.

I quickly straightened in the air and scowled at the system reading that appeared on the screen. That blast took out any part of the suit that was still working….I need to change.

"Sir, the barrier is pure energy. Every similar to Miss Penny's Shields, and ten times stronger than the ones that you have constructed." Jarvis stated, scanning the energy waves.

I sighed and looked down to where Loki was staring at me with amusement.

Time for plan B.

* * *

Pen's POV

Two men started back at me with wide eyes as bright lights shined down.

I was lying on a medical cot with a heart monitor and a few other things attached to me. The younger (appearing) of the two men stared at me in mind surprise while the other just took it with stride.

The walls were white, the floor was tile, and I instantly knew that I was underground.

Before I could even open my mouth to talk, or think of what to say, a mind sweapt across my own before freezing and quickly retracting.

"Oh my." The calmer man whispered in surprise as the other, more wild looking man spun around to stare at him.

"What is it?!" he exclaimed looking at me in worry.

Seeing that they were distracted for a moment, I was able to notice that I was only wearing a hospital smock, and my new Arc was visible to the world…great.

I had to keep myself from scowling. I was going to talk to my Bonded about the meaning of discreet.

"Something that I never thought…" The calmer, now surprised man barely was able to finish before I decided to speak.

"Hello Charles…it has been many years."

I smirked as the one known as James Howlett, or better known as Logan or Wolverine looked at me in confusion.

"Is it really you? You mind is the same…yet you look so…" Charles Xavier didn't know how to continue so I nodded softly and said.

"It is I. I did tell you, many years ago, that normality hates me." I chuckled and Charles shook his head slightly.

"If it was anyone else, I would not believe it." he stated with a small smile.

A few lifetimes ago, I had been a Benjamin Rayten; best friend to Charles Xavier, and secret co-founder of the School.

I wasn't expecting to be back…then again, I stopped expecting a lot of things.

"What is going on?" Logan snarled and I gave him a look of annoyance.

"Calm yourself. Now, not that it isn't good to see you, old friend, but just how is it that I ended up here?" I asked, wondering how is it that came to be in Xavier's school.

Logan gave me an irritated look but Xavier just smiled lightly and said, "That is an interesting tale."

Huh…well, I had a few minutes to spare.

* * *

Tony's POV

I tried my hardest not to glare at the 'god' as I landed and literally walked out of my suit.

Loki seemed curious I put on a lofty expression and ignored him as I made my way over to the bar…

'Wonder if Pen would let me drink…' I thought to myself as Loki spoke.

"Please tell me you're going to appeal to my humanity." He sneered, but sounded amused all the same.

"Actually," I said as I strolled through the apartment, "I was planning on threatening you."

"You should've left your armor on for that." Loki stated gesturing towards the landing platform.

I shrugged, "Perhaps. But it's seen a bit of mileage, needs an oil change. Besides, you've got the wonderful glow stick of death, so…

"You want a drink?" I offered as I slid behind the bar…now where did I put those things…

"Stalling me won't change anything." Loki stated, I could tell by the look on his face that he thought I was insane, or at least mentally challenged.

"I'm not stalling. I'm…threatening at a leisurely pace." I commented, pouring a scotch. "So, no drink then, you sure? Cause after this hell of a day I'm having one."

Loki spun on his heel and marched towards the window wall in anger. "The Chitauri are coming. Nothing will change that."

"I didn't say anything would." I said with a shrug.

"So, then, what do I have to fear?" Loki asked sarcastically with a sneer.

"The Avengers," I stated, about to start a list but Loki interrupted.

"That's what we call ourselves…sorta like a team thing…still hammering out the details, but hey. There're worse names I suppose." I stated as I put my liquor away. I didn't want it getting smashed. It was expensive.

"Ah, I've met them." Loki sneered, he sure did like doing that.

"Oh, I know. Didn't take a while to get a reaction, I'll give you that. But you know what let's go a little head count here. Your bother the demigod, the super soldier a living legend who might just managed to live up to that legend. A man with unimaginable anger issues with a massive Multiple Personality Disorder, a couple of master assassins, a few other little powerful beings scattered here and there.

"And like it or not, you managed to piss off every single one." I finished my rant as I slipped the tracking bracelets on. I just needed a few more minutes…besides, it was fun getting Loki mad at me.

"Well, that was the plan." Loki stated turning back towards me.

"Not the best plan there." I commented as I swallowed the small pick-me-up. I would deal with Pen's retribution later. "When they all get here, and trust me they will eventually, they'll be coming for you."

"I have an army." Loki stated like it was obvious.

"And we have a Hulk." I replied instantly walking towards him. Oh, how I wish I could deck him for what he did to Pen.

"I thought the mindless beast had wandered off." Loki said smugly.

"Oh, I've learned that when things wander off, they end up wandering right back to you." I stated descending the small set of steps.

"But you don't get it, there's no throne here for you. There is no version of this where you come out on top, where you come out king. Okay, maybe your army comes and we can't handle it. Perhaps we can't stop you. But if we can't save the world then you'll be damn sure we'll avenge it.

"Besides, you have no idea the size of the beehive you have stirred." I stated and swallowed the last little bit of my drink.

Loki stalked forwards and I eyed him carefully I knew what he was doing…I just had to plan this just right…

"How will your friends have time for me, when they're so busy fighting you." Loki stated and placed the scepter on my chest.

It hit my Arc with a soft clang, but nothing happened. With a smug smile I looked up at Loki who was now tapping my unseen Arc, extremely confused.

"This usually works." Loki muttered to himself.

"Eh, performance issues, happens all the time." I stated smugly.

Loki lunged forward and gripped me around my neck. With a swift move, one hand grabbed Loki's arm, and the other punched Loki in the face.

He jerked back in surprise but my grip on his arm kept him from backing away.

Locking my arm around his neck in a head lock, I stated, "Jarvis, deploy now!" and with two large strides I flung Loki and myself out the window.

* * *

**I know…still not a whole bunch of Pen oh well.**

**Sorry, no one from the HP world Yet…but this will be interesting and they will be coming in eventually.**

**Hope you all are enjoying it. **

**Most of you were right; it was Natasha who shot Pen. And NO ONE guessed anyone from the Marvel universe…eh, oh well.**

**Thanks for everything, everyone  
Cp**


	25. Back in Business(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing…if you think I do Sleepy Kamikins will convince you otherwise. *evil grin***

* * *

Tony POV

As we fell towards the ground, I had to let go of Loki, to spread my arms out for the suits scanners. I heard the pod descending towards us and hoped that Loki would smash face first into the pavement…

Sadly, that wasn't meant to be.

As soon as I relaxed my grip on his neck, Loki lashed out with his magic. Falling must have affected his aim because the blue blast only hit my leg (no I didn't scream in pain) but the blast gave Loki enough that it threw him back into the building though one of the windows.

It was quite violent, and I hoped that it hurt like hell.

My leg burned, but thankfully, as soon as Loki as out of sight the pod scanned my wrists and within moments, the suit wrapped around me automatically and I was able to straighten myself out and slow down right before I hit the ground.

The suit instantly was able to distract me from the burning pain that was my leg…adrenalin was amazing at times.

I shot up back into the air, and when I neared about the middle of the building, I spotted Loki dusting off broken glass and looking slightly disheveled.

"Oh and besides a few other people, there's someone else you've managed to completely piss off." I stated coldly, feeling much better now that I had the Mark VII on.

"Me!" I exclaimed, and Loki's face hardened. However, before he could even raise his staff I blasted him back into the depths of the building.

"Sir, the Tesseract and Arc Reactor just spiked. I am getting extremely high readings off concentrated energy coming from the roof. It seems as if the Tesseract has succeeded in opening a large interstellar wormhole." Jarvis replied as the building shook slightly.

I could literally feel the shift in the air. Glancing up, I saw the bright blue beam of energy that pooled high in the sky, and a rift opening up.

Instantly, aliens started pouring out and I narrowed my eyes.

It had begun.

* * *

Pen's POV

It hadn't taken me long to figure out how I had gotten there. I just used memories I had 'barrowed' from Logan (my old friendship with the Professor was the only think keeping me out of his head).

Apparently, somehow, when I was falling I had broken free of the rest of the debris and had literally crashed landed in the front lawn of the school. A few students had found me, and a few of the younger ones had freaked out. Apparently I was a bloody mess (literally) and I cringed slightly… I didn't mean to scar children for life…oh well.

Anyway, when I started healing, they took me inside, thinking that I was a mutant. They just watched I struggled to come back to life.

That was basically it. Not sure why they said that it was a big story…okay, perhaps my view was just…twisted.

Oh well.

My brain still wasn't completely stable. I had yet to sort through all of my memories, and thoughts, so my head was like a tornado spinning around…and quite dangerous. But instill the Balance was restored, I got the little bitch Fati off of my back for a while, and I made sure Dad hasn't done anything stupid…yeah, I had a list of things to do first.

Oh, and about my eyes. Yes, they do change color when I Awaken. They can be whatever color they want when I'm not Awake…but when my full powers kick in, bam. The killing green is back.

I was sort of glad of that fact; it was one of the only things over the years that has stayed the same.

Considering my GENDER wasn't one of those things…and my personality tended to shift slightly at times…yeah, I liked my eyes.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand.

I had felt when the Tesseract opened its portal, and apparently so had Charles, because his eyes had snapped to mine.

"Well?" he asked knowing that I was the expert on all things…extremely weird.

"There is…or will be a situation in New York. I want your guys to monitor the situation but not to interfere until I say so. But helping with the clean up afterwards would be greatly appreciated." I stated and Charles nodded looking thoughtful while Logan looked at me in confusion, suspicion and anger.

"How do you know her. She sounds mental." He asked his voice a low growl.

I rolled my eyes as I hopped down from the cot. With a simple wave of my hand and a pulse of energy, I was back in my typical outfit…well…I wasn't in the hospital smock anymore at least.

I was in my REAL silver cape, the one that came with the Immortal job description, along with my tight midnight blue dragon hide pants, and my thick black vest that was made out of some material not found in most worlds. It was funny actually, now that I was thinking about it. The outfit that Insania and Hel had picked out for me was almost identical to my real one…besides the fact that it was different materials and that the colors were different.

I merged the very fabric of my two pairs of boots, black dragon hide and my silver ones, into a single pair. It was an easy thing to do, and it kept both the best qualities and gets rid of the things I didn't like.

Now I had reinforced dragon hide, metal, silver boots…oh yes, I was happy.

The gauntlets sadly, hadn't survived the fall. They were now longer necessary of course, but still. I had liked those.

I saw Logan staring at me in shock and looked into the reflection of the heart monitor's screen. I looked like I expected myself to… bright green eyes, slandered Immortal garb…same red curly hair now with a half inch of silver now framing my face…

Oh yeah, the silver always showed up in one form or another after I Awoke…like with the eyes.

"It's like you've never seen a girl before." I smirked, my ways with words that had been enhanced with my time with Tony coming into play.

Logan twitched at my words but didn't reply.

Charles looked at me in question, and I knew he was bursting to know what was going on. Sure, I had explained the whole Immortal thing…well, sort of I told him I was super powerful and part of my Mutation was that I remembered all my past lives. But he was still Mortal, and therefore, extremely confused and curious.

"I don't have time right now." I stated as Charles opened his mouth to question me. "I promise, old friend, after I take care of the current…annoyance…I will explain what I can."

Charles searched my eyes before nodding slowly in acceptance.

Just then the doors to the small infirmary room slid open and the white haired woman known as Storm strolled in.

"Sir, we just got news, there's a major disturbance in New York…people are claiming that there's aliens sir." Storm reported instantly and for a moment I was reminded of Jarvis…huh.

"I know." I stated even know she wasn't talking to me.

All eyes snapped to me but I wasn't even paying attention. I as too busy eyeing the ceiling in interest…who knew that there was so many kids who knew how to properly eavesdrop? I approved.

"What?" Storm asked with confusion.

I rolled my eyes and wandered with a spin in my steps towards the other side of the room.

"Well, considering my Dad's currently fighting the battle with those 'aliens' of course I know what is going on." I stated with a shrug as I looked intently at a blank wall.

Well, actually, it just seemed like I was. I was actually staring at the wiring for the holographic training room that was on the other side of the wall.

"Huh?" Storm muttered to herself, and I rolled my eyes.

However, before I got to reply the shadows climbed around me and instantly I had Mortem's cold arms wrapped around me.

The mutants froze in surprise and eyed my Bonded closely, ready to attack.

"You know, you could be less dramatic for a change." I said allowed rolling my eyes and giving the silver eyed Immortal a smile.

Mortem rolled his eyes and just tightened his hold he had on my waist. He laid his chin on my shoulder and hummed in content.

The Bond, that had been weak while I was stuck, sprang to life once we touched.

Like fire burned through our veins our bodies were overjoyed. Our minds connected and I felt his calm, slow rhythm of emotions in the back of my mind. It was like a slow cool moving river that balanced out my fiery, quick moving flow.

There were a few notable things that resulted from the Bond. We could talk telepathically and it wasn't affected by distance or dimension. Also, we could sense one another's emotions, and while the Bond was active…Mortem could speak English…verbally without frying Mortal's brains.

We weren't sure why that was…but we never complained about it. We had other more…privet…ways of communication after all.

"Oh, I know." Mortem said, his voice like smooth silk sliding over ice, "But it's entertaining."

I rolled my eyes but planted a kiss on his each with made him smirk, obviously getting what he wanted.

"Now, I have a job for you." I stated as my Duties started calling for me.

"Aw…but you just woke up…" I snickered, yup. Mortem, Lord of Death and Immortal, the one who you were naturally afraid of…was whining.

"Mortem." I stated warningly. I gave him a look that just said, 'listen to me' and he sighed. There was no messing round with that look.

We knew each other well after over 25 centuries together…I had lost track a few lifetimes ago.

"Fine." He pouted and I giggled he was cute when he did that. "What do you want me to do?"

My face became serious and he instantly paid attention. He knew that this was no mere request…this had to do with our Realms.

"I know that Loki is making a mess, and that Hel is quite irritated with him." I started, ignoring Mortem's muttered, "Don't know the half of it…"

"So," I said and his eyes lifted to mine, "I am giving you and Hel permission to Interfere. I want you to Collect those Alien Buggers. They fell under our jurisdiction the moment they messed with our Realms…so, you gonna do it." I asked him with a smirk on my face.

A mischievous glint appeared in Mortem's eyes as he asked, "Can they help."

I paused to think about it. The last time we had let _them_ out to help with a situation…it had only gotten worse. But now, with my Duties screaming at me and things TOTALLY messed up…

"Yes, they can." I stated and Mortem kissed me with glee.

"But," I said pulling back. "Only if they don't so much as _look_ at a human soul."

Mortem nodded but I saw that the childish glee wasn't going anywhere.

"And I mean it." I threatened, giving my Bonded a low glare. "Or you're sleeping in Cor for the next Immortal Week."

Mortem paled. Time for Immortals was a funny thing…especially on Cor. There was no certain balance to the difference; sometimes it was faster in the Mortem Realms, other times, slower.

Infinitas never explained it to us.

So one week on Cor could well be a few centuries in the Mortem worlds…or less or whatever randomness Core decided on.

"I'll make sure they behave." Mortem promised looking terrified at my threat. Oh, and that wasn't even a bad one.

"Make sure that they do." I stated as Mortem gave me one last kiss before vanishing with a grin that would make the hardest of men cringe in fear.

I turned and froze…I had forgotten about the Mortals in the room.

Deciding that ignoring them was the best course of action I set of towards the door. I had a few things I needed to pick up.

After all, it had just begun.

* * *

**It is weird that I think Mortem and Pen are adorable together? I am wondering because I created them soo….well, anyway.**

**MORE PEN! Be HAPPY**

**Anyway, Mortem enters the mix, Pen's stirring up trouble and isn't completely mentally stable…but hey, I don't think any Immortal is. :) **

**Hope you all are enjoying it.**

**Tony totally gave it to Loki…hehe…I love Tony so much.  
Thanks.  
Cp**


	26. Wasn't Expecting That(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**The universe doesn't like me, and I don't control it, therefore I own nothing.**

* * *

Tony's POV

It had felt good blasting Loki…too bad it wasn't his face. But now…now we had to deal with his alien army.

"Alright then." I muttered to myself and my blue HUD switched to bright red, indicating attack mode was online.

I shot off towards the event horizon of the wormhole, where these ugly, reptilian looking things were riding some kind of scooter jet. They aimed with strange looking guns and a bright blue beam shot out towards me.

I dodged it with a roll, and returned fire swiftly. Swinging around from left to right I continued firing on the aliens, avoiding their return fire and the large energy beam that kept the wormhole open.

The suit and I worked together like thought, and it responded to my slightest action. The Mark VII was really the best one yet.

I snarled as one alien managed to dodge at the last second and slammed into me. I aimed my hand backwards, and while I didn't turn around, I still managed to shoot the thing out of the sky.

I had the built in shield ready to spring up at a moment's notice, and I had the laser tech that Pen had helped me with also on. So far there wasn't any need for it. But it was still just the beginning.

Sadly, I couldn't stop all of the guys from getting through. For every two that I destroyed, there was like five more. So…yeah, but I killed a lot of those suckers.

"Guys! I exclaimed into the com. You have an open invite." I stated hoping that they would get the message and hurry the fuck up.

Narrowing my eyes, targets danced across the HUD and my mini missiles reputed from my shoulder. Every single on hit their mark, and about twenty of those suckers lit up as fire balls in the sky.

A bunch got passed me, and I scowled as I heard that screams and explosions from the ground.

This wasn't good.

* * *

Pen's POV

"Where do you think you're going." I turned to see Logan standing in front of the door, his hands tightened threateningly. I rolled my eyes and sighed, why did I have to deal with the idiots right now?

My Duties twitched, and I knew that if I continued to ignore the warnings when hell really did break loose I would be in a world of pain.

"I," I drawled crossing my arms over my chest and scowling. "Have things to do."

"You're not going anywhere." He stated and I turned to see Charles looking between him and me in worry. Ah, so he hadn't forgotten what I was capable of.

"And you think you're going to stop me?" I asked in disbelief and I saw Storm tense. I really didn't want to fight Logan but it wasn't my fault he was being an idiot.

Logan's eyes narrowed and his claws unsheathed as he growled, "yes."

I laughed and they all looked at me weirdly. "Please, as if you could even touch me."

"I can cut through solid steel." Logan stated and I wanted to smack him…maybe I would.

"Good thing I'm not metal then." I joked with a smirk, huh, Tony really had rubbed off on me…or had I rubbed off on him…eh, oh well.

I rolled my eyes as they continued to look at me strangely. Apparently, they didn't know how to take a joke.

"I promise you, those things won't kill me." I stated and Logan narrowed his eyes at the challenge.

Charles apparently thought that that was a good time to intervene as he spoke up. "Logan, think for a moment. She just survived a…."

"Over four hundred feet." I said giving him my best guess. I had no clue what the Helicarrier's altitude was when we fell.

"Over four hundred feet fall. She's up, walking around, and perfectly fine. Do you really want to test her?" Charles asked and I had to admit, he reminded me a bit of Dumbledore.

A memory flashed to the front of my mind and my eyes narrowed.

One of the things that Fati had taken from me was my power of Soul Sight….being able to see the colors, shape, and intensity of a Soul.

Concentrating on the Mortals in the room colors filtered into my sight. The room took on a blue tint and each person was surrounded by the bright aura that was their Soul.

My eyes widened slightly as I realized just what I was seeing each Soul, even if you are another version of a person, is different; and while each time a Soul is Cleansed, it changed slightly, it stays the basic color that it was in the beginning.

Now, the chances are of meeting a Soul that you knew in a previous life was very slim. It hadn't happened to me before (I didn't know if it happened while I 'forgot' about my Soul Sight) and I was surprised now at what I was seeing.

But when was anything normal for me in any way?

Storm had a relatively young Soul, and I knew that it had been one of that last ones Mother had created before she stopped making Souls. That wasn't surprising, however it was Xavier's and Logan's Souls that surprised me. Okay, it didn't just surprise me it was literally like someone punched me in the gut.

I had had my Soul Sight for a few Lifetimes before Fati snagged the information and locked the power away, so I recognized his Soul immediately.

'Bloody Hell…' I thought to myself.

His Soul…he…was an old friend of mine from my…Fourth Life. Now that I thought about it, their attitudes and personalities were very similar. However, that surprise was insignificant to the one that met my eye when I looked at Charles.

His Soul was a mixture of colors, bright yellows and blues, vibrant green and purples; and the feeling coming off of the Soul itself…

I had only felt once before.

Although I had never seen his Soul for myself, there was no doubt in my mind…

Charles Xavier, my best friend only a few Life Times ago…had Albus Dumbledore's Soul.

I…wasn't expecting that.

* * *

Alright, so part of me was being logical and said that I would run into _someone's_ Soul from my First Life sooner or later…but Dumbledore?

…I seriously wasn't expecting that.

It took me a while to snap out of it, about a fourth of a second. (Which when you're an Immortal, with very high brain function, that is a long time to be surprised.)

Charles had obviously sensed something (he can't read my mind) because he opened his mouth to ask a question when all of the sudden my Duties screamed, and I doubled over with a small grunt.

'Aw hell.' I thought as I focused on the Call.

Loki's army was now attacking the Mortals, and that was a serious Imbalance. Loki had just crossed the line.

I couldn't stay much longer, but there was something that I wanted to get from the school now that I knew that it was the same dimension I was in a few Lives ago.

"Are you alright?" Storm asked as I pushed the tormenting pain to the back of my mind.

"Fine, I just need to get somewhere, quickly." I stated before sighing and gracefully walking towards Logan.

Logan unsheathed his claws and I rolled my eyes; and my Family said that I was childish.

I didn't bother dodging Logan's swipe, I just let my Sparks flare slightly, and they phased right through me.

All three Mutants gasped in surprise but I just ignored them as I Phased through Logan like he wasn't there and right through the door.

They followed me quickly, but I ignored all calls from the younger (appearing) Mortals. Charles remained silent, although he was confused. He knew it was me because my mind was pretty much the same as it was a few Life Times ago, so he recognized that. He didn't know _how _it was me. He just knew from experience not to get on my nerves or bug me when I'm on a roll.

The various students slowly appeared out of the wood work as I appeared on the main level and strode out onto the grounds.

For a moment, I was reminded of my early years at Hogwarts when whispers and rumors fallowed me everywhere, for that was happening once again.

I ignored the whispers that fallowed me through the wooden halls and into the grassy yard. Some of the rumors about me were quiet accurate as far as rumors go. Falling from the sky, dying, coming back…now of course, I didn't fight _anyone here_ but, I wasn't going to correct them.

However, as I heard an older student whisper to a younger I couldn't help but snort. I wasn't a zombie planning on eating all of their brains…that was just absurd.

Besides, reanimating the dead was Hel's thing.

I walked along the old building with ease, barely paying attention to where I was going. Apparently I had only been 'dead' for about ten years, but it was still slightly surprising at how little had changed.

Stopping at a large stone in the wall, behind the basketball court and the Jet's hanger, I let my glowing hand slide over the graffiti stone.

A small hidden compartment was revealed with I slid out a small dagger. The handle was silver and incrusted with small stones. The blade itself was only six inches long and was engraved with Celtic knots.

It had been a gift from Mortem for our 500th anniversary of our Bonding…it was very special to me. Because I had warded the knife so securely…Mortem hadn't been able to retrieve it for me after I had gone on to another Life, I was very glad to have it back.

Sliding the dagger into my belt I turned towards Charles once again. The students and other Mutants all shifted nervously as I scanned them, wondering what they were so nervous about.

"Remember, don't interfere with New York until I say otherwise." I stated and many of the teens looked at me in wonder. No one ever talked to Charles like that except for me.

"Why?" one of the Xmen…Cyclops I believe his name was, asked and I stared at him simply.

"Because I have said so." I said softly.

My Sparks flew around me, and I watched with a small sense of satisfaction as they all stared at me in awe.

Then, I was gone.

I had work to do.

* * *

**Next chapt Pen really kicks some ass…very little of the scene will stay the same to Avengers. Just letting you know now.**

**Anyway, yup, HP is starting to come into play just a tiny bit more. But Fati still has a few things up her sleeves.**

**Hoping you all are enjoying it,  
Cp**


	27. Obvious(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**Disney, Marvel, and JK own it all. Why do you keep thinking I do?**

* * *

Tony's POV

Thankfully, it didn't take long for everyone else to show up.

Thor was actually the first one to drop out of the sky, literally; as soon as the lizard things started destroying stuff and causing trouble.

He swung his hammer into an alien that was trying to take a shot at me.

"It's good to see yah!" I called out as I blasted another three away.

"Likewise, Man of Iron." Thor called back as he smashed his way through the beasts.

"Stark, we're here." Romanoff stated through my earpiece, and I hummed in response.

I had been watching the jet's progress as it approached NY; I knew that they were here. The jet had landed only moments ago (after Romanoff had shot a few of the alien things down) and it seemed that it was only _now_ that they were actually _on the ground_ that she thought that she should tell me.

"Guy's I'm going to see if I can stall their air attacks at all. Try to keep them away from civilians. Thor, buddy, I know that you want to deal with your bother, but until the Tesseract is shut down, he's not important." I stated as I took off into the air. I hoped that my assumption was right and that Pen was going to show up soon. Otherwise…my plan sucked.

"You waiting for someone Stark?" Romanoff asked, obviously sensing something.

I clenched my jaw…I wouldn't have to be waiting if she hadn't… "Yes, a few people actually."

There was a moment of silence before Rogers stated, "Did you hear that?"

It was a loud metallic groan, it echoed through the air and send shivers down my spine.

"Yeah I heard it." I stated as Jarvis said,

"Sir, the wormhole is increasing in side…something large is coming through."

I sighed and prayed that Penny would hurry.

"You guys catch that?" I asked, just as this giant, butt ugly, whale…turtle…crab…thing the size of twelve city blocks slithered out of the portal.

"Crap." I stated quietly.

"Heard it, see it…still trying to believe it." Rogers said and his voice sounded faint to me.

"Alright," I said charging up my weapons to full power. "Let's get the party started. Tell me when Bruce shows up."

"Banner?" Romanoff asked and I rolled my eyes, why did everyone keep dismissing him?

"Just keep me posted." I sighed and swung around towards the monstrosity so Jarvis could get a better scan.

"Jarvis, I need a soft spot." I growled narrowing my eyes at the large challenge.

"Of course sir." Jarvis intoned before the HUD started flashing and Jarvis added, "Sir, we are getting some strange energy readings."

"From that thing?" I asked, fearful that it was radioactive or something.

"No…from the shadows." I barely had time to register his words as everything fell dark.

The shadows seemed to lengthen and the clouds overhead seemed to darken. Left and right I saw Chitauri starting to fall left and right.

Dark mist rolled in from below the streets, and an eerie feeling swept over the city.

With bit flashes of grey mist, the Chitauri were disappearing randomly, and quickly. It was like they were being taken out by an unseen force.

"Jarvis, compare these readings with ones recorded from Mortem's presence." I ordered, having a feeling that I knew who was doing…or ordering…this.

"Sir, the readings are almost identical…expect on a much larger scale." Jarvis replied instantly and I sighed before turning around and shooting back towards the rest of the group.

"Thought as much." I muttered to myself.

However, it wasn't until I heard Thor's voice (Romanoff must've given him a com) that I knew I was right.

"Lord Death…what are you doing here?"

A smirk appeared on my face…if Mortem was here Penny would soon follow.

* * *

Third POV

Thor looked at the Immortal confused, the happenings were obviously his doing, but his actions were strange. Immortals were only allowed to interfere on Aequivalere's orders.

Mortem, who's hood was down but an aura of power swirled around him, just simply smirked.

"Thor, who are you talking to?" Rogers asked as Stark's voice echoed through the com.

"Mortem showed up?" the billionaire asked and Mortem looked amused.

"I have." He spoke and he glowed lightly for a second and when the glow faded, all of the Humans jumped back in shock now being able to see the Immortal.

"Hey…since when can you talk?" Tony asked and Thor nodded along in agreement.

Mortem shrugged as the others recomposed themselves.

"Since she fixed my voice." Mortem stated.

"Are you not forbidden from assisting us?" Thor asked looking at the black clad Immortal in curiosity.

Mortem chuckled and responded, "Not anymore….considering that it is my employees taking care of these …pests…I would say that I now am."

"Just who are you?" Romanoff wondered aloud, Barton and Rogers nodded in agreement.

There was a loud screech, and every Mortal jumped, waiting for an attack but one never came.

A dead Chitauri dropped to the ground in front of them, with a young girl clad in red and black armor pulling a spear out of its back.

"I would think that it was obvious." Hel drawled as she happily hopped onto the ground. "He's the Lord of Death…basically Death himself."

Ignoring the shocked faces of the Mortal's not in the know she turned towards her uncle and nodded, "Uncle Thor."

"Hel," Thor nodded back, his face thoughtful. He didn't see his niece very often as she resided in Helheim.

Hel then turned her attention towards her boss and she exclaimed with a large grin, "Thank you so much for letting me tag along! I haven't had this much fun in decades!"

Mortem chuckled and patted the Asgardian on the head like a small child before he spoke; "Now why would I deprive you of such a wonderful opportunity? Not to mention how entertaining it will be to watch you yell at your father."

Hel scowled at the mention of Loki and stated, "Yeah…he's going to hear an earful or two from me about this. I mean, come on! We're going to have to work over time for weeks to get all this sorted out…not to mention the paperwork you're going to have to make _me_ do."

Mortem shrugged and all of the Mortals, besides Thor, looked confused at their interaction. "Not my fault, it's your job."

Hel didn't say anything, she just grumbled. No one knew what to say, and just stood there in silence.

The shadows acted like they were alive, jumping out and swallowing the offensive beings that had their master so irritated…or, unknown to them, their master's Bonded.

"So," Tony said through the com, "Can you ask Mr. Doom and Gloom if she's going to show up any time soon."

Mortem chuckled as Thor looked surprised that Tony had the gall to calm him that.

"I can hear you. Do not worry…she shall be here soon."

"Good." Tony stated and Hel chuckled.

"So, do either one of you have some trick up your sleeve that could help me out here? Cause this big ugly brute is ticking me off." Tony stated and you could hear the irritation in his voice.

"…I'm having trouble believing this." Rogers muttered and the two assassins nodded to his statement.

Hel rolled her eyes before spinning around and giving Mortem large purple puppy-dog eyes. "Plee…..aasseee boss…can I do it? Pleeassseee…." Hel practically begged and Mortem rolled his eyes.

"Fine, but if they get out of control…your dealing with her." Mortem stated and Hel smirked at her boss.

"She has you so whipped." Hel commented before Mortem's eyebrow twitched and Hel was sent flying backwards into a building.

Rogers and the other agents looked gob smacked as Thor shook his head. Not much had changed since he had last seen them.

Almost instantly, Hel teleported back to her boss' side and stuck her tongue out at him. "Meanie" She teased before he looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

Hel sighed and said, "Alright…"

With a raise of her hand and a look of concentration on her face, the shadows began to lengthen and instantly dark robed figures appeared out of the ground.

There were two types of figured that appeared. One seemed like it was nothing more than a floating cloak that reeked of Death, while the other was more humanoid with bright red eyes, grey skin, and an evil grin.

"Take out all of the intruders. Do Not Touch a Human Soul, and behave." Hel hissed to the new arrivals.

They all narrowed their eyes at the girl; well the humanoid ones did, before jumping/floating off towards the Chitauri.

"You six," Hel ordered nodding to a mixed group. "You're with me; we're taking out that big thing up there."

Hel pointed at the large whale like creature that was still deploying more and more ground troops with a narrowed eyed glare.

A smirk appeared on her face, and within a blink of an eye, the small group of seven was gone. Within an instant, the thing screamed in rage and pain.

Mortem narrowed his eyes as Loki flew by on one of the scooters, shooting at him.

He turned to Thor and said, "I believe it is time to deal with your wayward brother."

Thor nodded, and with a great swing of his hammer, he jumped into the sky after the trickster.

Mortem then looked uninterested at the remaining Mortals, who looked at him with unease.

Tony must have sensed the tension through the com for he said, "Hey, don't you think you guys should be getting the civilians out of here?"

That snapped everyone out of the dark trance that had befallen them and Mortem nodded, agreeing with his Bonded's father.

"That would be most wise…they have not been around Mortals for some centuries…and it would not be wise to test their restraint." Mortem stated, his eyes flickering towards the hooded figures and the red eyed beings that were taking the Chitauri out left and right.

"What are they?" Barton asked grimacing as he saw a red eyed being rip a Chitauri's head off.

Mortem's look darkened as he replied, "Things that should never have existed in the first place. Demons…and Dementors."

* * *

**Heheh…there yah go! Have anyone else noticed that more HP is coming into play? I told you it would…it just took a while. :)**

**This would've been posted 7 1/2, 8 hours ago…but I got busy, so sorry.**

**Anyway, hope you all are enjoying it. **

**Pen next chapter…I promise… on my remarkable brain!**

***chuckles***

**Thanks,  
Cp**


	28. E're(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**Disney/Marvel and JK own everything, don't sue me.**

**THIS CHAPTER IS DEDICATED TO THE "TWILIGHT UNICORN" WHO WAS THE FIRST ONE TO TELL ME I MISSED AN UPDATE, AND "THEONCOMINGWIND" WHO WAS WORRIED ABOUT ME! YOU ALL ROCK!**

* * *

Tony's POV

Whatever those things were…Mortem was right, they shouldn't exist. The readings that I was getting from them were off the chart.

The red eyed ones didn't have any life signs while exhibiting extraordinary strength, endurance, and ability. They were ruthless, brutal, and I had to admit they were effective against the Chitauri. But I didn't doubt that they would turn on us in a heartbeat.

The other creatures were even stranger, Jarvis and I weren't sure if there was even a physical body beneath the cloak that drifted along the ground. The energy readings Jarvis did showed that they weren't technically alive either, they were beings of some energy. The way Jarvis explained it, it was if they were small black holes wondering around, looking for any positive energy to feed on.

They were horrible creatures and part of me wondered why Mortem even let them loose.

The group of six, led by Hel, had already taken out the whale/turtle thing and that enraged the Chitauri even more, it significantly helped.

Thor had gone off to try and reason with Loki, or get him to tell us how to shut off the Tesseract, but I didn't think that that was going to work.

I was flying around, trying to get as many of the Chitauri out of the air that I could. I had brought Barton to the top of a roof so he could be our eyes, and now, we were working together to get as many of the things killed as possible.

Romanoff and Rogers finally managed to get the local police to get everyone below ground. Mortem had told us that they would be protected.

Romanoff had questioned Mortem, until we both pointed out that now wasn't the time for questions and to wait until later.

Mortem did say, when she asked why he as helping, that he wasn't going to ignore 'her'.

I of course knew he meant Pen…they didn't know that.

"We need to get that cube shut down!" I yelled through the com and I heard Rogers grunt but no one else replied.

Well, that was until her voice drifted through the com.

"That, shall not be a problem."

My heart stopped and a grin appeared on my face at Pen's voice.

"Good to have you back." I said relief clear in my voice.

"It's good to be back." she replied as Romanoff's voice echoed through my ear,

"Banner's here."

My grin widened and I smirk with a glint in my eyes.

Now that party was really starting.

* * *

Penny's POV

I looked around at the chaos with distain, this was _my_ Realm, and Fati had gone too far. Loki was glaring at Thor at the top of Stark Tower, Barton was shooting down the Chitauri left and right. Dad was flying around, taking out as many as he could. Romanoff was taking as many down as possible, and the Captain was helping the police get the Mortals to safety.

Mortem appeared by my side, on the top of a large tower, with a sigh.

He looked weary, and knew that keeping all of his people in check was tiring.

The Demons and Dementors had been locked away for millennia, after I convinced him that they were simply too dangerous to let roam free.

They were enjoying their free time; even though they preferred human lives…they were content. And that brought bile to the back of my throat.

"Thank you, my Bonded." I said giving Mortem a small but grim smile. "But I'll take it from here."

Mortem nodded and vanished into the Shadows, recalling most of his people from the ground.

I closed my eyes and let my Duties take over. Right now, I wasn't Penny, or Harry, or even human. Right now, I was Aequivalere, I was Immortal…and this was my job.

My bright green eyes snapped open instantly as my Duties protested at Loki stabbing his brother.

"_**Loki, Loki, Loki…why have you let this darkness take your heart?" **_I asked with my voice echoing mentally and through the wind; as my power slowly enveloped the city. Everything seemed to slow and within a moment all movement had stopped as the Mortal's were captivated by my luring power.

"_**Have you truly forgotten everything that I taught you, young one?"**_

Silver mist overtook the shadows that Mortem had cast, and a stiff stillness had befallen the city.

I vanished with a swirl of mist and sparks, and reappared on the very Tower deck that I had helped make.

"_**I am disappointed in you."**_ I said with a sigh. Loki had been such a wonderful child, so curious and full of life. He wanted to know how everything worked, but always knew how to get everyone to laugh. He was talented in magik, and sadly, that was where his struggles had begun.

It seems that my centuries of absence hadn't helped his situation; even though I strived to show him a better way of life…I had seen the darkness that could grow in his heart. It was why I had been brought there in the first place. It was why I was made best friend to Odin; it was why I was made Godfather to Thor…it was why I practically was a father to Loki.

My hood was up, and my outfit covered as the two Asgardians froze and looked at me in shock. Loki looked horrified, but that was to be expected.

After all, I had died in his arms when he was merely twelve years old.

"Aequivalere." Thor breathed in shock, using the original Latin pronunciation of my name that I had used when I was on Asgaurd… long "I" sound in the beginning and a hard "e" sound at the end.

However, the kids had always just called me E're (pronounced airy), which I had always found amusing…it was so similar to Harry.

I nodded, but spoke, "I go by Aequivalere now." I pronounced my name with the more feminine and modern take to it; beginning with a soft "a" sound and the end simply being "air".

Loki just stared at me as Thor looked between the two of us, wondering what I was going to do.

"_**Loki, you have disrupted the Balance."**_ I spoke gravely, knowing that everyone in the NY could hear me…well almost everyone.

"_**What do you have to say." **_I asked, hoping that he would be able to fight Fati's control and see reason.

It was not meant to be.

Loki's face slipped for a moment before the mask slammed back into place. "You all will bow to me!" he exclaimed with a sneer.

I sighed sadly and said, _**"Then so be it."**_

Loki raised the scepter, and it swirled with energy. Before he could even fire it, however, my hand with the Deathly Hallows ring reached out and my power surged.

The storm clouds that had hung in the air lit up, and Thor was barely able to jump off the building as a lightning bolt the size of the tower itself struck.

* * *

Third POV

"Holy freaking hell!" Tony's curse echoed through the com link as everyone stared up in awe at the show of power that was now on the Stark Tower.

Barton, having run out of arrows, had been brought back to the ground by Tony when the young Immortal had started speaking.

Tony and Thor probably knew the most about what was going on…but both were extremely confused.

Tony had no idea what his daughter was talking about, and Thor was just shocked that his Godfather was alive…or actually, he was just surprised that he was here.

E're had told the Asgardians when they had been but children, about his many travels, but he had told them that if he died, to not expect to see him again.

The chance of ever being in the same dimension again was practically zero to none.

The Avengers, including an EXTREMELY confused Bruce Banner all stood together as they watched the enormous show of power faded and the world dimmed back to its normal color.

"What have we gotten into?" Barton muttered to himself causing Rogers and Romanoff to nod slowly.

"What is going on here?" Bruce asked, looking uncomfortable, and if you looked closely, you would notice that his skin had the lightest and faintest of green tints to it.

"My Bondened had been angered." Mortem said, causing everyone to jump besides Tony, who was used to it, and Thor who had sensed it.

"She's pissed." Hel agreed appearing next to her boss looking a bit roughed up.

"Will someone explain what on earth this is all about!" Rogers exclaimed, looking close to having a mental breakdown.

Tony didn't reply, but he glanced up at his scorched, but otherwise unharmed tower in thought.

There was defiantly something that Penny wasn't telling him…something huge.

"Everything shall be explained later." Aequivalere stated appearing from a swirl of silver mist. "But for now…we need to get to work."

Mortem, Hel, Thor, Tony, and Bruce (who recognized Pen's voice) just simply nodded.

"Mortem, Hel, get back downstairs and start sorting through the Souls, there's going to be a influx of class NFE Souls very soon. Romanoff get up to the Tesseract and try to shut it down. Thor, light those ugly bastards up like target practice. Barton, Rogers, you finish taking out the grounded Chitauri…"

All of the sudden the quiet, stillness that the youngest Immortal had caused was broken. With a great flash of light and a large whip lash of energy, three whale-turtle thing burst through the wormhole.

Aequivalere staggered slightly as the backlash hit her and she sent an unseen scowl at the wormhole.

"Tony, try to take down those things, I will assist... they will continue to come though till the Tesseract is shut down. They broke through my shield…" She paused and turned towards Banner.

"Bruce, I would recommend letting Hulk take the wheel right now." The Immortal commented. The others, besides Tony, were confused at her wording but Bruce nodded.

"I think she meant that it would be a good time to get angry." Rogers said, trying to be helpful.

Mortem and Hel rolled her eyes. Loki's daughter vanished and Mortem just looked at Banner in thought.

"The Other Guy doesn't like you." Bruce stated staring at the Death Immortal.

Mortem shrugged and said, "I know" before vanishing as well.

Bruce then turned towards the Captain and said, "That's the thing, Cap…I'm always angry. I'm just not always Hulk."

With a nod to the others, Bruce's skin turned dark green and with one of the smoothest transformations that Penny had ever seen…Hulk was there staring at the aliens in anger.

"Hulk," She said and he turned towards her instantly with a thoughtful look at his face. "Smash."

A ferial grin split across his face and he jumped into the air to meet the whale-Chitauri head on.

* * *

**There! Yes, I know I didn't update yesterday…so I'm giving you two chapters today to make up for it.**

**This was yesterday's chapter, and you'll get today's as soon as I write it. The reason that this wasn't up yesterday was I was out literally all day, and then my friend slept over and we stayed up till three am watching anime. (I am very sleepy right now)**

**So yeah, I have an excuse.**

**PEN's BACK! XD**

**Later,  
Cp**


	29. Eventually For The Best(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**If I owned anything, then I would have people who would do stuff for me…and I don't. So, therefore, I own nothing.**

* * *

Penny's POV

Hulk instantly took off, first going after the newly deployed Chitauri troops before jumping from building to building towards the large creatures flying through the air.

"Well, ready to rock and roll?" Dad asked and I smirked at with even though he couldn't see it.

"Absolutely." I stated as my mind spun with plans.

Dad took off into the sky, and it only took a glance to get the other Avengers moving as well.

My sparks surged around me and I was soon following Dad into the air, Thor close behind.

Thor flew towards the Empire state building, and almost instantly, lightning was flying left and right.

"As soon as this is taken care of." Romanoff growled into the com that I still had in my ear, "You are explaining everything Stark."

I rolled my eyes at the Mortal and could tell that Dad did as well. Perhaps things would be explained, but it wasn't her place.

"Okay, those things have a weak spot right behind the front fins. Their insides are also extremely vulnerable, so getting one to swallow a missile is a good plan." I stated to Tony as we decided on one.

"You get one, I get another?" Dad asked and I chuckled, I could hear his hidden happiness from here.

"No problem." I replied, a large grin spreading across my face.

Dad swerved off to deal with the large thing a few blocks over while I literally appeared a few hundred feet above the one that was causing the most problems.

"Bye, bye ugly head." I muttered to myself before charging up my sparks.

Power flooded through my veins as a ball of electrical light grew rapidly in-between my hands.

It grew larger and large before it was larger than I was, with a small grunt, I released the massive energy ball.

It shot forward with great speed, it glowed as bright as the sun and it was a pale white blue. I smirked in satisfaction as the thing opened its mouth to try and eat it.

The ball slid down its throat and I heard Romanoff snort from the other side of the com before the whole thing glowed eerily and suddenly, the whole street was covered in thick Chitauri-whale guts.

"Impressive." I heard Dad comment over the com and I managed to turn just in time to see Dad use his lasers to chop the thing up like sushi.

"Likewise." I said, I really wanted to say more, but since this com link was open for everyone…well, I wasn't ready to open that can of worms since we still had this one to deal with.

I turned towards the third Chitauri-whale but before I could do anything Dad sped toward it and I heard him say,

"Jarvis…have you ever heard of Jonah?" I groaned at Dad's words…he wasn't thinking what I think he was thinking…

"Hawkeye, green and gold finally decided to show back up." I heard Romanoff said and groaned again. "I'm heading towards you, shoot him for me, will you?"

"It would be my pleasure." Barton stated coldly.

"Sir, I wouldn't call him a role model." Jarvis replied sounding concerned for his creator.

"You know what you're doing?" I asked Dad before jumping back into the air.

"Yeah…I think." I sighed at his response but just twisted in the air and appeared on Barton's new roof.

The arrow flew true, but Loki, who was looking worse to wear, simply caught it when it was only inches from his face.

However, Loki's smirk was wiped off his face when it exploded and caused him to go crashing onto the padio of Stark Towers once again.

"Romanoff, get to the Cube." I ordered vanishing again and reappearing next to Loki.

"I'm here." I heard her reply and vaguely saw her landing on the roof above me.

Loki, whose hair was still smoking, looked at me warily but I didn't have to do anything. Just then Hulk jumped up onto the padio and I smiled.

"Take care of him Big Guy?" I suggested and Hulk snarled nodding at me before turning to glare at Loki.

I vanished just as Loki was thrown into our living room…we would have to remodel again.

I appeared only a few feet away from Tony just as the large Chitauri-whale blew up violently, and Dad who was covered in slim, flew free.

"Tony, new priority." I stated as I didn't see any more of those things. "Blast those Chitauri bastards to kingdom come."

"With pleasure." Dad replied and instantly flew off, blasting random Chitauri out of the sky on the way.

I reappeared in our living room, to find Hulk gone, craters on the floor, and Loki totally out of it.

"Doesn't look like you're going anywhere at the moment." I commented before pulling up a shield around him, just to make sure he didn't go anywhere.

I was just about to check on the others, when Romanoff's voice echoed thorugh the com. "It's no use…I can't shut down the Cube."

I opened my mouth to reply as I strode from the room, but suddenly my Duties screamed my Soul twisted and I doubled over in pain.

My eyes narrowed as I could instantly sense what was wrong.

A dementor had managed to escape my Bonded's weave, and was descending on a group of scared Mortals.

My eyes hardened and before a Mortal could even blink, I vanished in a swirl of power only to reappear only a foot away from the two dementors that had managed to escape.

Their dark powers no longer effected me; but my Soul screamed in protest as the Souls were drained from the Mortals around me.

Rage like no other filled me, and I didn't even thing as I raised my hand.

The Deathly Hallows ring pulsed and before I knew what I was doing I snarled.

"_**Not today…EXPECTO PATRONUM MAXIMA!" **_ I had just acted on my instincts, years in my First Life with dealing with them took over. To my surprise, a large silver dragon erupted from my hand and with a great wave of power, it swept through the beasts, causing them to disintegrate on impact.

My patronus faded and I stared at my smoking hand in shock. It had been over a millennia since I had performed that kind of magic…I had thought I had lost it when I had finished my First Life.

However, closing my eyes, I now realized that it wasn't true.

Humming with energy with great potency was another Core besides my own. However, this one wasn't with my Sparks, or my Immortal powers…

It was my Magic.

"I can use it." I whispered in awe as I glanced at the smoking dust that remained of the dementors.

"I can use it!" I exclaimed happily and suddenly, something clicked inside of me.

My eyes hardened as I vanished once again.

* * *

Infinitas' POV  
Cor

'It has happened.' I thought to myself as I watched as my Sister rediscovered a large part of herself. She would need it in the coming times, she would need a lot.

"Yin!" I called out and the small boy appeared at my side almost imediotly, he was well trained.

"Release them." I stated gravely. I had waited many many years to give that order…now, now it was time.

"Who, M'Lady?" Yin responded looking at me with meekness.

"Both of them." I ordered not turning to look at the child whose whole life was laid out infront of me. "You know of who I speak of."

"Y…Yes, M'Lady." Yin stammered before rushing off.

I Watched as he scampered through my home, and down deep into the bowls of the monument.

It didn't take him long to get to the two rooms that had held the guests for all of these years.

It had hurt me so to do this, but it was necessary.

Everything I did was necessary.

I watched with a grim expression as the large bird flew out of it's 'room' and into the next one. It grabbed the black haired woman on the arm before flaming away.

"It's for the best." I whispered to myself as I reemerged myself into the various futures, pasts, and dimensions that I monitored.

Everything was eventually for the best.

* * *

**A bit shorter than usual, and a bit confusing, but hey, 2 in one day, that gets me back on track.**

**You all are welcome, by the way.**

**Oh, isn't it awesome that Pen get's her magic back? I'll explain that more later.**

**Anyway, I need to go crash so goodnight!**

**Cp**


	30. Baby, Let Me Go(unbeta'd)

Awakening

***hides from bloodhounds in suits* I own nothing, just leave me alone!**

* * *

A hard feeling settled around me as I appeared on the top of Stark Tower.

"Go." I ordered Romanoff who looked unsettled by my sudden appearance and cold tone of voice.

I closed my as she literally jumped off of the tower, hitching another ride off of a Chitauri.

My Soul was twisting in pain, and I watched as if it all was a movie, the things that happened around me.

Hulk was getting blasted by over twenty Chitauri at once. Dad crashed into the street, a lucky shot managing to destabilize his thrusters. Clint was out of arrows, and Rogers was bleeding heavily from a wound, but it was healing swiftly. Thor was beginning to look fatigued and it was time for this to end.

I called upon all of my powers, Sparks, Immortal, and Magical.

I raised my hands as a vortex of power erupted around me.

This had to end.

"_**Non Homenum Stupefy et Protego Horribilis Maxima!"***_ My voice echoed throughout the city, and with a bright flash, a red wave of magic reputed from me, and swept over NY.

Casting the spell that I had crafted myself in the Fifth World War in my First Life, took a lot of power and left me breathless but I watched in satisfaction as it worked.

The Chitauri dropped out of the sky, and fell to the ground almost instantly. A quiet swept over the city once again as the red magic swarmed into the air, and formed a hard shield around the wormhole.

For a moment everything was still, and it was like the whole world held its breath, before Dad broke the silence.

"Bloody hell." He stated in awe at the magnificent show of power that I had just displayed.

"I've been rubbing off on you." I said lightly as I strode towards the Tesseract. I could shut it down, by force if necessary.

"…not sure if that's a good thing." Tony muttered but everyone heard him.

"It's a perfectly accecptable thing, I'll let you AHHH!" I screamed in pain as my Soul twisted and I fell to my knees.

Something was wrong…something was horribly wrong…

"….what's wrong…." I heard someone call, and the sound of panicing voices over the com. but at the moment, none of that mattered.

My Realm was severly imbalanced…something was happening that it shouldn't….

…it had something to do with SHIELD.

I growled as I got back to my feet. Bringing both my Magic and Sparks to my fingertips I sent a pulse into the com link, and instantly I knew I was connected to SHIELD's bridge.

"What the hell did you do!" I practically screamed as my Soul continued to twist and turn in agony.

"Who are you!?" Fury demanded and I snarled in anger.

"Now is not the time, what did you do!" I exclaimed and my voice hardened in warning. Oh, he just had to push me now…

"Just answer the question." Romanoff butted in and I snarled,

"Stay out of it." I wasn't ready to deal with her yet. I still had to _thank _her for _shooting_ me.

"I am not authorized to say anything to…" Fury began with his whole 'I'm better then you' charade and it caused me to snap.

"Nicholas Joseph Fury! So help me, I may have been dead for the past twenty years, but you still answer to me! So answer the damn question!" I screamed, taking on the role of a previous Life.

Not too long before, the Life after I had been Benjamin Rayten, I had been Agent Lynx Aria Jackal, known as Agent Jackal. I had been the one who trained Fury…and I had also had been one of the founding members of SHIELD…as well as the previous Director.

"….Lynx?" I heard Fury mutter in shock as he recognized my tone of voice and speech patterns. He would, I had yelled at him enough over our long lives together for him to know me.

"That is correct, Agent Fury." I stated coldly. "Now, I explained to you my circumstances the last time we had coffee together. Do I need to elaborate further? Perhaps a stroll down memory lane regarding your rookie years?" I threatened, if there was one thing that was going to get though that man's thick skull, it was the rookie card.

I could practically see Fury 'sweat dropping' from here.

Fury cleared his throat and said, "That would be unnecessary."

"Good," I drawled, barely able to keep my voice steady as my soul twisted in pain. "Now, according to Section Four Paragraph Eight "B" Subsection "J" of the SHIELD policy, I am authorized to any and all information that I require. So let me ask one more time, what the hell did you morons do!"

I heard many agents muttering to themselves in the background, probably gossiping about the conversation or looking up the section I mentioned.

"…A Nuke was launched." Fury muttered.

My eyebrow twitched and I snapped.

"You launched a bloody missile! Fury, when I'm done with you Spring Break of '68 will look like a picnic!" I screamed and I could hear him flinch, literally.

"…Director Jackal?" I heard both Rogers, Barton, and Romanoff mutter together.

Of course they had heard of me, I was a legend…if I did sayso myself. I had actually met Romanoff before, when she was still young and hadn't gotten on SHIELD's radar yet. She had known who I was of course, but at the time she hadn't cared. But I must've left some impression on her for she cursed, creatively, in Russian.

"Agent Romanoff that is no need for that language!" I scolded, I had always hated it when my agents swore.

"Now, what is that Nuke's ETA." I ordered my eyes narrowing. There was only so much you could do with a Nuke…and all of them took power.

"…one minuet and counting." Fury reported and my eyebrow twitched again. I wanted to fry seomthing…or someone…

Actually, I just really wanted to fry a curtain purple eyed Immortal.

"Pardon the interruption, I love listening to Fury getting whipped, but I know just the place to put it." Dad stated lightly and I caused me to calm down.

"I'll get that portal opened back up, but you'll have to be quick. Even with the Tesseract my shield has destabilized the wormhole, it will collapse in on itself only moments after the shield falls." I stated and I heard Tony hum in acknowledgement.

"Stark…you know that it's a one way trip, right?" Steve asked and my eyebrow twitched again.

"It is not!" I snarled sparks and magic flying between my fingertips. "Don't you dare treat it like one!"

"Moody much?" I heard Romanoff mutter but I ignored her.

I sent a wave through the com that severed the link between the Starks and the rest of the world. Now it was only Tony, Jarvis and I…just like the good old days.

"Dad, you are coming back through that portal…do you understand me!" I exclaimed, my voice lightening, but quivering at the same time. There was no way in hell I was losing him.

"Pen…right now the only thing I understand is the fact that there's a bomb coming, and putting it in that rabbit-hole is the best idea I've heard." Dad replied and I could hear his voice shaking.

"…your coming back." I whispered, and my eyes hardened. I would be making sure of that.

Dad didn't reply for a moment, and I watched with a heavy heart as he flew beneath the small Nuke that could level the whole island of Manhattan and quite a few miles around it.

"I love you Pen," Dad said softly and tears sprang to my eyes.

"I love you too Daddy…your coming back….you have to." I stated, my voice shaking and I was biting my lip to keep from screaming in frustration.

I could get rid of the Nuke easily enough…but my Duties told me to stay put. That this…this was something Dad needed to do.

"Sir," I head Jarvis say and even his voice sounded saddened, "would you like for me to try Miss Potts?"

"Sure," I head Dad's reply, and I could tell by the tone of his voice that he didn't expect to make it.

"Dad, don't you give up! Do you hear me! Dad!" I exclaimed, but he didn't answer. I watched as he pushed the missle away from its intended target.

For a second it looked like they were going to hit the scortched and battle worn Stark Tower, but instead, it shot straight up only inches from the glass.

I watched wide eyed as Dad shot past me. For a moment, he looked behind, and for a moment, our eyes connected, (my hood had fallen back in the magical blast) though the HUD…and then, that moment was gone.

Dad's attention turned back towards the portal, and just as I swallowed and disbanded the shield…

Tony vanished from sight.

The last thing I heard was him saying,

"Penny….baby…let me go."

* * *

**Hehheheheheh XD I'm so evil! Hehehehehehehehehe, I would have added another paragraph or two, but I need sleep, so I'm heading off to bed.**

**I know that it is a few hundred words shorter than usual…I do, and I also know that it was a horrible cliffy…**

**But hey, I get fun reviews this way! *evil smirk***

***that is a spell of my own creation, though it is a mixture of JK's butchered Latin: Stupefy, Protego Horribilis, Homenum Revelio, and I also threw a bit of Google Translate's butchered Latin in there to make it work. Eh its a lot of butchered Latin but, oh well.**

**Hope you all are enjoying this, and just to put all of your minds at ease…**

**TONY ISN'T GOING TO DIE! That would be too mean, and how would I do the rest of the movies? It would just ruin everything.**

**But the scene is staying similar…if you didn't notice.**

**Pen is getting more mixed up with her Lives…and once all of this adrenalin wears off..her instability will come more into play.**

**Hope you all are having fun,  
Cp**


	31. MY REALM!(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**This is so much fun! *evil grin* but I still don't own a thing. *pout***

* * *

"I will not!" I growled and glared at the portal.

"Shut it down!" I heard many voices yell at me. I narrowed my eyes, but with a quick wave of my hand, the Tesseract shut down, and the Portal started to collapse faster.

"…it was that easy!" Fury exclaimed, and I knew that he was keeping an eye on me from some camera somewhere….

"Pretty much." I shrugged and narrowed my eyes at the wormhole. He had to come back…he just had to…

"Come on Stark," I heard Romanoff mutter and it as then, that I decided enough was enough.

"TONY!" I yelled as the portal closed, and my keen eyes instantly saw him freefalling towards the ground.

"No…NO!" I yelled and charged up my sparks. Oh, it was not ending like this.

"Son of a gun." Rogers commented as the mortals spotted my father.

"He's not slowing down!" Thor exclaimed in concern.

I vanished with a whirl of power, and appeared on alongside of my father. I grabbed onto the suit and expanded my power around me.

Sparks flew and magic flared, but it did little to slow our decent. My cloak whipped around me, and my hair flew back and I tried to slow our dangerous decent.

"Shit," I cursed as I realized that it wasn't working. Even my hovering was useless against the gravity…

My eyes widened and my power flared as I remembered a spell from eons ago…

"_**Aresto Momentum!" **_My magic and power flared together, and we started to slow, but it wasn't enough.

I looked worriedly at the approaching city with a twinge of fear.

I closed my eyes as my power spun around me, I knew teleporting from this height and speed would be dangerous for Dad but…

Just as my sparks were about to flare, and just as we passed the rooftops of NY, Hulk appeared out of nowhere.

Like he had done so many months before for me, his large green arms wrapped around Dad and I; saving us from our deadly fall.

With Dad in one arm, and I in another, Hulk grabbed onto the side of a building for a moment to slow our fall, before launching off the side with a turn.

He crashed into the asphalt on his back, pressing Dad and I to his chest in protection.

As soon as he slowed, he let go of me and laid Dad's limp form to the ground.

"Fire Girl." Hulk nodded to me before looking at Tony in worry.

I muttered a quick thanks before kneeling at Tony's side.

The suit was heavily damaged, and the Arc was dark. I cursed under my breath and using my powers, pulled the faceplate off.

Dad was clearing worse to wear, he had a cut going down his face and his was pale. He wasn't breathing.

"Oh, you are _not_ dying on me!" I exclaimed as I charged up a ball of energy.

It was that moment that Romanoff, Barton, Thor and Rogers all appeared at my side. Romanoff and Rogers stared at me open mouthed as they recognized me. Barton simply looked confused, as he didn't know me (he didn't remember our little rooftop meeting) and Thor already knew me as E're.

"Mortem hasn't collected your Soul; it isn't your time…" I snarled as I glanced at Hulk, he got the message and shifted his stance.

"So wake the hell up!" I yelled and I shoved the energy ball into the Arc. The whole suit glowed as Tony's back arched off the ground.

At the same time, Hulk let out a large rawr, and with a large gasp, Dad opened his eyes.

"What the hell…" He muttered as he looked around in shock. Knowing how it felt like to be forced back to life, I gave him a sympathetic smile and he looked up to me in relief.

"Don't do that to me again." I scolded and with a laugh he closed his eyes and leaned his head back, regaining his breath.

"I recall saying the same to you not too long ago…" Dad muttered giving me a small, playful glare.

I shrugged and replied, "Not my fault."

"Whatever you say, Pen." He drawled lightly before glancing around at the Avengers.

"No one kissed me…right?" he stated, trying to lighten the moment.

"No, Daddy…no one did. That's Pepper's job." I quipped and Dad was able to chuckle weakly.

"Good….what happened to your eyes…and your hair?" Dad asked, glancing between my now vivid green gaze and silver stripe in my hair.

I shrugged and said, "Side effects."

"So…what happened?" Dad asked, looking up at all of them.

The Avengers looked at one another; besides Barton…he was trying to get his head around my 'daddy' comment.

Steve then said, "We won."

I hummed as Dad sighed in relief, it would've been worse if I hadn't been here…but it was still nasty.

"Yay….great job guys…Pen….how about we just not come in tomorrow? Yah know? There's this Shawarma place a few blocks down…never tried it, but Insania mentioned it to me a few weeks ago…and I want to try it." Tony stated, trying to draw attention away from me.

My Soul shifted as my Duties alerted me to a disturbance and I scowled.

"I'm afraid that it will have to wait Dad…there's something else we need to deal with." I stated and with a small spark, blocked Dad's pain off, for now.

"Loki." Thor stated nodding to me and Tony.

Tony groaned, but gave me a grateful look as his pain faded.

"Wait; let me get this straight…" Barton interrupted before we could say another word. We all turned to him and he continued, "Stark has a daughter, she's some freaky, superhuman…thing that knows the Asgardians, used to run SHIELD, threatened Fury…and took care of basically everything with a few waves of her hand?"

Barton started to get slightly hysterical as his brain overloaded. Not only had his brain been fried during the whole mind control thing, but his entire world just fell apart to pieces…

It was a miracle that he hadn't had a total mental breakdown yet.

Dad and I shared a look before I replied, "Pretty much." Before Dad's hand lashed out and hit Barton on the leg, hard.

"And don't call my daughter a freak!" He exclaimed with a glare. Dad then gave me another look and said, "You are explaining everything later."

I nodded and it looked like Rogers, Romanoff, and Barton were all minutes away from a mental breakdown.

"Then Shawarma afterwards." Tony added and I gave him a weak smile.

I may be a lot more than just Penny Stark now…but it was nice to have some things that never changed.

"_**Charles, some help cleaning up would be nice."**_ I projected knowing that Xavier would hear it…he was using that little machine of his to keep an eye on things. I could sense it.

"_Of course,"_ came his mental reply before his metal presence vanished.

"What on earth?" Rogers exclaimed, worried about the voices he heard in his mind.

"That was just Xavier; I told him that I'd appreciate come help cleaning NYC up." I stated and helped Dad to his feet.

"…you know Charles Xavier?" Romanoff asked after a moment of silence and I shrugged again.

"Once upon a time we knew each other quite well. But that was a long time ago." I stated and turned towards the Tower were Fati's presence hung like a foul odor in the air.

"…you really Stark's kid?" Rogers couldn't help but ask, looking at me in disbelief.

I looked at him annoyed and drawled in a very Stark manner, "What, you can't tell?"

Rogers shut his mouth after that, and Barton threw in, "A very strange daughter you have their Stark."

My eyebrow twitched, and I wanted to know how _he_ would like an arrow through the eye.

Dad must have sensed my train of thought because he said, "No."

"But Dad…." I whined with a pout, it wasn't fair. I wouldn't hurt him, he was just annoying me.

"I said no." Tony replied looking down at me as he moved around making sure the Mark VII was still at least slightly functional.

"But you don't know what I was planning!" I exclaimed, part of me was telling me that I was acting like a small child…but my Soul was extremely young…

That sort of influenced me…greatly.

"Penny, I know _you_…and I know that look on your face." Dad replied as he deemed the suit was good enough for now.

I pouted and Thor chuckled. I glared at him, my eyes flashing, and he quieted, but his grin remained.

"Now," I said, looking over everyone. "I believe that we have a wayward Prince to take care…"

I froze as Fati's presence tripled almost instantly. She was trying to Interfere and disrupt the Balance…

She had already done enough damage…I wouldn't let her do any more. It was time she dealt with the backlash. Not to mention that her games HURT LIKE HELL!

"_**FATI IMMORTALIS!" **_ I screamed as my Soul twisted and my power surged around me, making everyone take a step back.

"_**WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING, MESSING WITH MY REALM!?"**_

Oh, that Immortal was _dead_.

* * *

**Hehehe…Oh, Fati's gonna get it. XD**

**Just a bit of a filter, you know how that goes. Okay, I need to know, how many of you are getting the Email updates? Cause I haven't seen one for the last 3 chapters…and I don't think people are getting them. As I have had a few people ask me if I'm alright…**

**So, yeah. **

**If you aren't getting them, then I need to talk to the Admin or whomever it is I email or PM about problems. **

**If you know anything, let me know so I can deal with it.**

**I don't think that the spell I used was in the books, but it was in the movie so it's pretty legit. Even though I'm not that fond of spells that were created after the fact.**

**Anyway, hope you all are enjoying it!  
Cp**


	32. Complications(unbeta'd)

Awakening

…**I own nothing…**

* * *

Oh, I was done.

Fati had pulled a lot of shit during my Existence… I was _done_ with her sticking her manipulative nose where it didn't belong.

Everything that she had done…the list was too long to mention all of them: messing with my memories, messing with my Realm, my Sisters' and Brother's Realms, Mortem's Realm, messing with Tony, _killing _the people that _I had loved. _She had used me, over and over again, without me even knowing…

And boy was she going to get it.

"_**FATI I HAVE A BONE TO PICK WITH YOU!" **_I screamed and my power flashed, and instantly I was in the remains of our new living room.

Loki was lying on the floor, breathing harshly. He looked up when he felt my presence, but when his eyes opened, they weren't his normal green.

They weren't even the Tesseract blue.

They were purple…bright purple. Fati's purple.

"Hello Sister dearest." Loki/Fati drawled with an insane grin that didn't suit the god.

"Fati." I growled and knew that if we wanted most of the situation to stay under the radar we would have to do this quickly…Dad was already following.

"Now, come on, is that the way to treat family?" Fati stated playfully and I glared heatedly at her.

She didn't deserve to be called Family.

"Family," I spat placing my hands on my hips, "Don't treat each other this way."

Fati/Loki looked up at me in fake confusion. "Whatever do you mean?"

"Don't play that game with me." I hissed narrowing my eyes dangerously. "I remember everything Fati, every trick, every twist, every nudge, everything you have _ever_ done to me. You thought me your plaything; you thought you were better than me.

"You are nothing but a jealous spoilt child Fati. You're like a spider, sitting on its web, spinning strings to trap you next meal. You care nothing about the Mortals, or Existence. I don't know why you have done this, and I don't care. But you shall answer to your crimes, Fati, if I have anything to say about it.

"For too long have you messed with others Realms, for too long have you thought yourself invincible.

"But let me tell you." I paused, my voice was no longer filled with fury…it was cold, hard, like Ice….like Tony when he truly hated you and wanted you to know it. "Your games are done."

Fati/Loki just stared at me, his face a blank mask, and I knew that I wouldn't get a read of her/him even if I wanted to.

Loki's Soul was being repressed by Fati's. Fati was literally swashing Loki…and the sure power of Fati's Soul would crush the Mortal's sooner or later.

"My, your way with words have grown, Sister Dear." Gone was Fati's pleasant, sweet tone. Her voice was now hard, but unlike mine, her fury and anger shown true.

"Tis sad…you were such a fun pawn." Fati sighed and my eyes narrowed in anger.

"I am not your pawn Fati, and I never was. No matter what you managed to convince me of." I stated and worry started to gnaw at my heart.

If Fati continued to suppress Loki's Soul and mind for much longer…there could be serious lasting damage.

"I am surprised, Fati," I stated, knowing that I had to manipulate her to get anything accomplished. "Choosing to control a Mortal…albeit a powerful one…but still. Stooping so low, just to get back at me?"

Loki/Fati's eyes narrowed and she hissed, "You know nothing! I was the favorite, I was the one everyone loved! I was the Youngest, the special one! I was the one everyone adored.

"Then you had to come along, ruining everything! You, the foolish Mortal who only ever survived on sheer dumb luck and chance! You, who from the very start refused to lie down and die! You were a pain in my side in you First Life…and you have remained one e_ver since!_

"Oh, but everyone always thought you were _so_ special; even before you knew about us. It was always, _Harry Potter _this and _Harry Potter_ that. I never saw what everyone else did…you were pathetic, weak, you weren't _worthy_ of joining us.

"It was quiet easy you know, taking control. A few strings hear, a few favors here….and suddenly, no one and get own and you control everything! Everything…but you.

"You, Aequivalere, the _baby_ the _Youngest;_ you proved to be the hardest to control. It seemed as if your First Life had taught you something…for you seamed to subconsciously pick up on my normal means of manipulations, and you walked right past them. Not even noticing what you were doing…it was pathetic.

"Then, of course, I finally was able to convince you to trust me. It was quite simple actually…I can't believe you fell for the idea that Balance is only a part of Fate….HA! Oh, you were so nice, clueless, idiotic.

"After that, it was simply making sure that you would never be able to realize my game. So, a few memories here and there, where something slipped. Blocking this power, stripping that one…sure, it was work, and chancing you all of the Dimensions so you could do your Duties was a pain, but in the end, it was worth it.

"Not even a millennia had passed before you were broken. It had taken so little to do so… a few unexplained deaths, a few recurring nightmares, your own personal hell you couldn't escape.

"Not even Chaos…who at first I was worried about at first, could do a thing. Not after what I did to her."

Rage whirled around inside of me like a hurricane inferno. The little _bitch_, I already knew most of this… but to hear her admit it like she was talking about the _weather_!

I managed to control myself as she continued to rant…I needed her to spill everything before I could End her.

Then, she mentioned Insania and I snapped….if she had been the one who caused her to become…

"WHAT DID YOU DO!" I growled and my power shook the tower.

"Temper, temper, Sister…oh, I did nothing. I just insured that her Realm was…too much for her. Do you know how easy it is to make a mind break? Of course you do. You've been there…that dark deep hole that draws you in.

"You remember don't you? The cold, the pain, the voices whispering in your mind?"

Fati's smooth voice echoed through my mind. My eyes clenched shut and I gripped my head trying to hold those memories at bay…

"…you think you're a hero…you think that you can save everyone. But you know? You can't. You're weak, your pathetic, your just a child trying to play a grown up game…you only get people killed.

"All of them…" Her voice drifted through the large dark fog that was now my mind…

"All of their Deaths…

"_**Hermione,"**_

No…make it stop…

Hermione's face flashed in the forefront of my mind and I fell to my knees, make it stop…

"_**Luna, Ron, Remus, Tonks, your parents…"**_

Face after face flashed in my minds eyes and my heart clenched and my Soul screamed in anguish was the pure agony surged through me.

"_**Teddy, Sirius, Moody, Molly, Dumbledore…the twins, Charlie, Susan, Raya…"**_

Stop…

NO….

"_**Your whole world burned because of you."**_

The large blast, the Muggles against the Wizards…World War V…the war that had ended it all flashed through my mind.

Millions dead…every plant, every human, every _child_ everything with life on the planet was wiped out…

Everything except me.

"_**Oh, but it didn't end there? No, you only kept bringing death and pain to everyone…didn't you? How many died for you in your Lives Aequivlaere?**_

"_**Hundreds, thousands?**_

"_**Even the ones you loved…Sam, Ellia, Ben, Terry, Alen…so many…for what?**_

I whimpered as my previous lover's faces flashed through my mind…

Make it stop…

I could feel the numb blankness crawl out of its corner…slowly creeping up the corners of my mind…

"_**It will just happen again, Little One…they're all gonna die for you." **_

The voice dropped to a whisper,

Who was talking?

I couldn't remember.

"_**You think they'll care for you, when they realize what you are? You think things will return to how they were?"**_

…what did it matter…

…nothing mattered any more…

"_**You think that they really care? You want to know a secret little one? They don't, they don't care about you, they don't give a damn. Not even your Bonded cares…where is he little one…"**_

The small amount of my mind crumbled….

…where was Mortem…

…maybe he didn't care…

"_**That's right."**_ The voice purred, _**"Sleep little Immortal…sleep…**_

Then, the black fog consumed everything.

And I was gone.

* * *

Third POV

Loki/Fati leaned back with a laugh. Looking down with glee at the mentally broken Immortal before her.

Oh, yes. She knew that she would break loose eventually…so she had planned.

She always had another plan.

She sneered at the pathetic form that was the Immortal/Mortal and turned away.

She wouldn't be an issue anymore.

A loud blast echoed through the tower and a hard, cold hand gripped Loki/Fati's shoulder and spun him/her around.

The controlled Asgardian came nose to nose with a _pissed off_ Mortem.

Black flames danced around him wildly, and his eyes were the darkest black, trimmed by red. His usually blank face was filled with pure rage, and it looked like nothing would please him more then to shred Fati to pieces and then feed what was left of her to the Dementors.

"What," He snarled, his voice sending shivers down the spine of whomever heard it, "did you do!"

Fati laughed and it sounded strange coming from Loki's mouth.

"Oh, I haven't done anything. Choas did."

No sooner did the words leave her mouth then another loud explosion of power rocked the tower, and three other Immortals appeared.

Vitam, Infinitas and Insania all stood there with cold hard expressions on their faces.

Insania glared at the possessed Asagard, how dare she try to blame this on her.

"_**Fati Immortalis." **_Vitam and Infinitas spoke together as their Younger Sister knelt beside the Youngest.

"_**You have been found guilty of Over Stepping, Interference, Intentional Harm to Another of Cor, and Attempting to Take Another's Realm. By Father's Word, you are to report to him immediately to hear your sentence and the punishment that will be carried out."**_

While the Mortal's below couldn't hear the Immortals words…their power caused everyone to shiver.

Loki froze, before sneering at the two females.

"Sorry, not part of the plan." Loki/Fati stated. Purple magic swirled around him, and instantly Fati was gone.

Loki collapsed into a heap, the strain from being possessed by an Immortal too much for even an Asgardian.

Insania was whispering things into Aequivalere's ear, a dark glowing hand on her head.

Mortem sneered at where the other Immortal had been standing before slowly kneeling down besides his Bonded.

His expression softened and his eyes faded back to silver as he looked up to Infinitas in concern.

"_**Will she be alright?" **_he asked pulling her onto his lap.

Infinitas did not answer; she looked down at Insania who answered with a sigh,

"_**It is unclear how much damage was done to her mind…I was barely able to restore it last time."**_

Every Immortal shivered, not wanting to think about that specific Life.

"_**But,"**_ Insania added, _**"I believe that she will be alright…"**_

Mortem sighed in relief, and another followed.

The four Immortals turned to see that they were not alone. It had seemed that Fati's presence had caused them to be over looked…but that was now not possible.

Standing there, on the shattered landing patio just inside the windows, was the Avengers.

Bruce back in human form, Romanoff, Barton, Thor, Rogers and Tony were all standing there in shock.

"Well," Mortem drawled "This complicates things."

At his words, Romanoff, Barton, and Rogers fainted from brain overload. Bruce simply sat down and didn't move. Thor and Tony were the only ones capable of normal brain function and they looked at them in worry, though Tony's eyes were mostly focused on his daughter.

"_**Indeed."**_ Vitam stated simply giving Tony a look over.

Stark gulped.

* * *

**Okay…that did not turned out as planned. Not at ALL! But…I don't think it was bad either.**

**So, I'd put a longer AN but I have an Iron Man piñata that I have to get painted by Saturday and I'm busy the next two days…**

**Yeah, so I'm cutting this short.**

**Oh! If you guys haven't been getting the emails, check your spam. Gmail updated, and for some reason it put half (ONLY HALF) of my FF emails from the past…four days or so…in there. So, if you haven't gotten one (I know most of you have) then that is probably why.**

**I felt like an idiot when I finally figured that out. **

**But it was weird…three years (at least) using this sight ad that was the first time a FF email ended up in my spam.**

**Huh,  
hope you all like it! (okay, this isn't a short AN)  
Cp**


	33. Aequivalere's Interest(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**If you think I own a thing, then I shall make Fati give you a mental breakdown. :)**

_**Bold and Italic =Immortals talking to themselves, or mentally shouting in anger.**_

* * *

Third POV

"_**So,"**_ Vitam asked glancing at her Sisters and Brother. _**"What are we going to do?"**_

"_**I don't know."**_ Mortem stated, looking between the awake Mortals and his siblings. His Bonded was still in his arms, and he was unknowingly rocking her gently. His heart constricted in worry.

"_**Well,"**_ Infinitas said slowly, thinking. "_**The best course of action seems to be to just erase their memories. Not all of them...just certain things from the past hour that could be...dangerous for the Mortals."**_

"_**From everyone?"**_ Insania asked glancing over at Tony, who although he couldn't understand them, knew that they were talking about him and the others.

"_**Yes,"**_ Vitam said nodding to the younger Immortal.

"_**But, couldn't they be helpful? To Aequivalere I mean. We can't be in this Dimension all the time...we all have our Duties and someone should be able to be here to help her."**_ Insania pointed out, and for a moment...she actually sounded, well, sane.

**_"I can help her, thanks for your vote of confidence."_** Mortem drawled causing Infinitas and Vitam to look at him in mild surprise.

Mortem rolled his eyes and replied, "_**Surely you don't think that my Bonded hasn't rubbed off on me?"**_

Insania giggled to herself as the others rolled their eyes.

"_**Be that as it may."**_ Infinitas continued, _**"It would simply not be wise to let any of the Mortals keep their memories.."**_

The old Immortal paused as a young boy appeared with a flash by her side. He had pale white blonde hair and dark blue eyes. Infinitas leaned down and the child whispered something into her hear that caused her to nod and with another flash, the child vanished.

"_**It seems,"**_ Infinitas said slowly, _**"That it would be in Aequivalere's best interest for the Mortals to remember...but only two of them."**_

"_**We shouldn't mess with the Asgardian...he already knows about us, and I think that it would be good for Aequivalere to have someone around from her old life."**_ Insania stated looking over at Thor who was glancing between Tony and the Immortals, waiting for something to happen.

Vitam and the others nodded. The Asgardians had always been very helpful, and many of them became Adiutores, entering the Immortal's serves.

"_**Agreed….but what of the other two?" **_Vitam ask as they glanced around at the two Mortal scientists.

Infinitas closed her eyes, and looked thoughtful for a moment. No one dared to interrupt the Elder…they all recognized her Focusing her Sight.

Infinitas sighed as she opened her eyes, _**"It would be wise to leave Bruce Banner and Tony Stark's memories intact…the repercussions otherwise would be…unpleasant."**_

"_**Indeed?" **_Mortem asked raising an eyebrow.

Infinitas nodded and almost as if on a cue another Immortal, this one with dark blue hair with golden highlights and gold eyes. Like the other Immortals it was almost impossible to tell her age. She did appear, however, to be older then Insania…you could just feel the ancient power rolling off of her.

"_**Memoriae."**_ All of the Immortals intoned and she nodded to them in greeting. Like her name subjected, her Realm was Memories…not just from humans, but everything. She knew everything that had ever happened. She worked alongside Infinitas, but history was her forte.

"_**Infinitas, Mortem, Vitam…Chaos."**_Memoriae nodded to her Siblings in greeting, but paused noticeably before greeting Insania.

"_**Insania." **_ The young one corrected with a scowl.

Memoriae nodded in acceptance.

"_**Just the unconscious ones?" **_The new arrival inquired of her siblings.

"_**Only them." **_Mortem confirmed tightening his grip on Penny.

"_**Just the last few hours, and only things contrary to any information to Immortals." **_ Vitam stated and she nodded.

"_**After this, I shall take care of the others who have learned too much." **_ Memoriae stated and Infinitas nodded.

"What's going on guys?" Tony asked looking warily at the new Immortal as she approached the others.

"Worry not, Anthony. She is simply altering their memories of any…sensitive information that has to do with …Penny…there are some things that Humans are just not ready for yet." Mortem stated in English, and the three of the Mortals nodded in caution.

"…they're not gonna wake up and forget everything? I mean their ass-holes but still…" Tony stated in worry.

"They will not be harmed." Mortem promised while Memoriae looked slightly offended at Tony's words.

"…are things going to be explained any time soon?" Bruce asked, looking up in question at the Immortals.

The Immortals communicated silently for a moment before Mortem said, "Aye as soon as things are straightened out…A…Penny and I shall explain it all."

"What shall become of my brother?" Thor asked speaking for the first time.

"He will awaken with a large headache and most likely a guilty conscious. But otherwise his possession by our _Sister_ will leave him unharmed."

Thor nodded his thanks, but kept silent. Which surprised the Mortals, in the time that they had known him, the Asgardian was not one to remain silent.

It took little time for Memoriae to finish her work, and it was only then that she took her leave.

"Is she alright?" Tony asked Mortem, looking like he wanted to run over and pick up Penny for himself.

"…I am unsure…" Mortem admitted looking pained.

Tony shifted, holding himself back and Mortem noticed his plight.

"Is there a better place for Penny to rest until she awakes?" Mortem asked Tony and he nodded, motioning to the couch on the other side of the room.

"I'm…gonna get out of this…" Tony muttered before walking off to pry the suit off. "…and get a drink."

"I think I'll join you." Bruce muttered following him.

The Immortals all shared a look before chuckling.

Mortals.

* * *

About ten minutes later Tony, Bruce, Thor, Mortem, Insania and Infinitas all sat in various chairs around the couch where Penny lay.

"So…someday, huh." Tony stated slowly trying to break the ice.

Infinitas froze, before standing abruptly. She seemed to say something to Mortem before vanishing.

"My Sister apologized, but she is required elsewhere."

Tony shrugged it off, "No problem."

"So…are you all realted or something?" Bruce asked looking between Insania and Mortem.

There was a awkward pause before Insania answered

"Not physically, except for a few. But for our kind…we consider ourselves family…because we have none of our own." Insania stated and Tony noticed that she was unusually grave and sane.

Bruce hummed in response but all further talk was interrupted as Penny gasped and sprang upright.

Tony and Mortem were instantly at her side, looks of deep concern on their faces.

"Penny, are you alright?" Tony asked gazing at his daughter.

Penny turned towards the two men who looked at them blanked eyes.

"Aequivalere!" Insania snapped, recognizing the signs.

All of the sudden her eyes cleared and she flinched.

She turned her gaze back at Mortem and Tony as she whispered, "Hi Daddy…hi Mortem."

* * *

**Supper short channel but I'm brain dead…so sorry.**

**Hope you are enjoying it. **

**Cp**


	34. Unexpected(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**Disney, who owns Marvel, and JK own everything.**

* * *

Third POV

Mortem and Tony tried for ten minutes, along with Insania, to get Penny to say something else. But she did not.

She simply stared at them blankly and didn't respond to anything.

Just when Tony was about to give up, and Mortem looked ready to snap, Penny was snapped out of it…

But not by them, or even anything humanoid.

Soulful song filled the air, and in a great burst of flames a large red and gold bird the size of a swan appeared above them.

Everyone's minds were soothed and felt like a soft hand was stroking their Souls. Penny's eyes cleared as the bird landed on Pen's knee.

"Thank you Fawks." Penny whispered before her eyes widened in shock.

"Is that really you?" She asked her voice sounding faint.

Fawks trilled in reply and bobbed its head.

"…what with the flaming chicken?" Insania asked and Tony looked at her like she was crazy…which she is.

The phoenix glared at the Immortal who glared right back. Mortem gave the Phoenix a sour look and sneered.

Mortem was Death, phoenixes are practically immortal…let's just say that they don't get along.

"It's good to see you my old friend." Penny whispered softly as Tony and Bruce, who was even more confused, turned their attention back towards the red (and silver) head.

"So….explanations now?" Tony asked, but then, they were interrupted by Loki, Barton, Romanoff and Rogers groaning at the same time.

"…Bad timing Infinitas…or good timing." Mortem muttered under his breath as he and Insania vanished.

"Arg." Penny groaned with a pout. "I don't want to have to deal with them."

_**"Tough."**_ Mortem's voice echoed through her head.

* * *

Penny's POV

Ignoring the swelling darkness in the back of my mind, and the fact that my head was a bloody mess was easier said than done.

But we managed to get things looking…well as normal as the situation could.

"Wa…what happened?" Rogers asked as Thor 'helped' him up.

"What hit us?" Romanoff asked as Bruce pulled her too her feet.

"Blast from whoever was controlling Loki." I stated bringing their attention to me.

"Just who the hell are you?" Barton asked while Rogers and Romanoff exchanged looks of confusion.

I shrugged as I leaned against the window. "Hmm? Oh, just daughter of the billionaire who likes flying around in a met…" Dad snorted so I rolled my eyes and corrected, "_gold titanium alloy_ suit and blowing stuff up in his free time."

Barton's mouth dropped but I wasn't done.

"I also have thing for lightning, am best friends with Loki's daughter, have met every single one of you… 'cept Rogers…before now. I also have three doctorates, and am extremely hard to kill. Now, does that answer your question?" I drawled, sounding very much like my father.

Rogers, Romanoff, and Barton just continued to stare, that was until Dad brought everyone's attention back to Loki.

"Guys, he's up and his eyes are back to green." Dad stated as Loki looked at us in confusion.

Within an instant, everyone was huddled around the Asgardian. Loki paled when he saw all of us and said to Dad,

"I think I'll take that drink now please."

Dad nodded, and the newly awakened were surprised to see Tony hand Loki a glass that had already been poured.

At Rogers' questioning look Dad shrugged and said, "if you were being controlled, wouldn't you want a drink?"

Barton and Romanoff shared a look while Bruce nodded after a moment.

"yeah," I replied and Dad glared at me.

"That question wasn't for you." He stated and I pouted.

"But…" I started crossing my arms over my chest and looking up at him with large eyes.

"No buts," Dad stated which caused me to pout farther. It wasn't like I had never drank before….okay in this Life…not so much; or at least not successfully.

"Your no fun." I muttered under my breath and Loki was looking at me in wonder…well, so was everyone else.

"We are in the middle of a very serious situation here." Romanoff stated glaring at me, and I glared right back.

"I know that." I shot back, just daring her to test me.

"No, I don't think you do." She stated and stuck my tongue out at her.

"You're mean, no wonder you're the one who shot me." I stated before freezing…I didn't mean to say that.

Romanoff froze before stating, "I don't know what you are talking about."

Bruce looked at Romanoff darkly while Thor looked ready to smite her…that would be funny to watch!

However, it wasn't their looks that conserned Romanoff, it was Tony who she was glancing fearfully at.

Tony, and looking out the window, trying to ignore the conversation topic. When he realized that everyone was silent he turned back towards us only to find almost everyone staring at him.

"What? You want a reaction from me? I've known for hours now." Tony muttered before sending me a pleading look.

"No." I stated and it was now Tony's turn to pout.

"Please?" He begged and I shook my head.

"Please?" He asked and again and I glared.

"I said no Dad." I stated staring him down.

"Aw." Dad moaned in defeat.

"Huh?" Rogers asked completely confused.

"Dad want's a drink." I explained giving Loki, who was still staring at me, a worried look. "He can have one after Loki's taken care of."

This caused Tony to grin widly and pull me into a huge while everyone else looked at us like we were crazy.

However, my statement also made Loki slowly back away from us. I noticed it first and my eyes flashed.

"_**Loki, we aren't going to hurt you." **_ I said directly into his mind causing him to freeze.

His eye met mine and we held the gaze for a moment while we silently communicated until Loki broke away with a sighed.

"I….am…" Loki stated slowly trying to apologize but was cut off when Thor wrapped his brother in a hug.

"Brother, it is goof to have you back." The Thunder God exclaimed in joy.

"It is good to be back, brother." Loki replied patting Thor on the back awkwardly.

"Wait, so your telling me that Loki isn't the bad guy here?" Barton asked looking like he seriously wanted to shoot him.

"Yes, that is exactly what I am telling you." I replied and Bruce snorted.

"How about we moved to a more comfortable floor, call up Fury, and try to work this out." The doctor suggested.

"Great." Tony exclaimed, "If you all don't mind." He stated with a smirk as he waved his arms towards the door.

"…you sure that this is a good idea?" Rogers asked looking at Tony and Loki in worry.

"Yup!" I exclaimed and helped Loki to his feet who looked at me in thought.

"…well, this is unexpected." I was able to hear a small amount of his words as he whispered them.

"Life is filled with the unexpected, unknown, and strange Loki…you would do well to remember that." I stated as we slowly began to follow Tony.

Well, I could only say one thing.

This would be interesting.

* * *

**Longer then yesterdays but still short. I barely got this up before 12…BE HAPPY**

**Night,  
Cp**

**PS Sorry for my really bad word errors last chapt. I'll fix them, and for those who spotted them and bothered to tell me…**

**GIANT CYBER COOKIES!**


	35. Adayna(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I have Iron Man 3. HEHEHE. But I don't know it. ;)**

* * *

"What do you mean, Loki isn't at fault here?!" Fury's hologram exclaimed.

I rolled my eyes and I saw Dad do the same. Bruce was lying on the couch seemingly 'asleep'…but I knew better, though the Chitauri weapons and all of the new information did wear the man out, he wasn't sleeping.

"I mean exactly that." Dad continued, this conversation hadn't been going anywhere for some time now. "This wasn't Loki's doing."

"The hell it wasn't his doing!?" Fury snapped in anger.

"It wasn't." Tony rebuked eyeing the one eyed man.

"Oh who's authority?" Fury demanded and I sighed, man he was annoying sometimes. Always had been, come to think about it, but old age seemed to be getting to him.

Thor opened his mouth but I had already beaten his train of thought and was on my feet.

"Mine." I said as I walked into the camera's view. Not how I was planning on revealing myself to Fury but, oh well.

Fury's mouth dropped open in shock and I heard Hill gasp in the background, for a moment, I wondered where Coulson was. Then I dismissed that thought, it wasn't a big deal right now.

I kept my smug smile to myself but I was glad that I had had the foresight to change before Tony called Fury. Sure, I liked my Immortal battle outfit…but it was a bit…different, for the Mortals it would've only freaked him out more.

I how had on another green headband in my hair, a silver tank top that displayed my Arc proudly, a dark green miniskirt over silver leggings, of course my silver boots, and my cloak. The Deathly Hallows sign displayed proudly as well, though no Mortal knew yet what it meant.

My cloaks was thrown back behind my shoulders so that my figure was revealed, it made me look more…human, but still awe-inspiring.

Fury's eye was popping out of his head as he said, "You're dead."

Dad and Thor chuckled as I shrugged. "For a time, yes I was. Thanks for reminding me I still have to _thank_ Romanoff for putting a bullet in my chest."

Fury and Romanoff flinched at my words, lightly, but Barton started at his partner in confusion. Both agents were giving Tony concerned looks (they didn't know that he knew) but he ignored them.

"how do you know that Loki's actions weren't his own?" Fury demanded and I stared at him with a bored expression.

"First off, whoever was controlling me told me, second off his eyes changed color twice, and third do you really want to question me again?" I asked giving Fury a glare. Memoriae didn't remove the memories about me being the previous Director, and I was glad, I was probably going to need that card in the future.

Fury winced again; he seemed to be doing that a lot, before asking, "What?"

I rolled my eyes, had he been this slow when I trained him? Thankfully I was saved from answering by Thor who stated,

"Lady Stark is correct. My brother's eyes are green; while he was causing chaos here his eyes were blue."

"And while Loki and I were exchanging biting compliments, his eyes were purple." I added onto Thor's sentence.

Fury's gaze flipped over to Rogers and the others and said, "Is this true?"

The three looked at one another before Rogers volunteered himself and said, "I'm not sure….Penny….Stark?" he looked at me and I nodded so he continued, "Miss Stark was a huge asset in our fight with the Chitauri, however I wasn't present…or conscious, when she confronted Loki a second time."

Fury nodded in acceptance, Barton butted in and added, "Stark, Thor, and Banner all seem to believe her though." He then turned to Dad and asked, "Stark."

"Yes?" Dad and I replied together with a smirk.

The three Mortals left out of the loop, and Fury, all groaned.

"_Mr._ Stark," Barton corrected himself with an eye roll. "Do you have any other reason to believe this besides your daughter's word?"

I could see Tony's eyebrow twitch from here and shook my head. He walked right into that one.

"Though I trust my daughter more than anyone…no offence Jar," Dad paused and turned his attention towards the AI.

"None taken Sir." Jarvis replied almost instantly.

"I can explain my reasoning's for you." He glared at Fury before continuing. " all of us showed up to find out what had happened to Loki and found him and Pen in a bantering contest. Loki's eyes were glowing, and purple. It was very noticeable. Thor can note that he wasn't acting himself. He quickly noticed us, and sent a large blast of purple energy at us that sent us all flying back.

"Thankfully, while my suit took some damage it was able to absorb most of the attack. Rogers, Barton, and Romanoff were all thrown backwards and knocked unconscious briefly. The blast caused Banner to hit his head and turn back into himself, while Thor was the only one who remained unharmed.

"Pen had taken the brunt of the attack. She protected herself so she was left only slightly dazed. But the attack pissed her off so she sent back one of her own. It nocked Loki and I notice that his eyes faded back to green. Pen, Jarvis, and Bruce helped me get out of the Mark VII then the others awoke.

"I got Loki a drink on his request and made it down here because this level is less destroyed, and is more relaxing then the other unfurnished floors." Dad finally finished and I was proud of my dad for coming up with such a simple and believable story.

"Is this true?" Fury barked out.

"Yes," everyone who had their memories said, though Thor said, "Aye."

Fury gave us all a look that said he wasn't talking to us before he turned his attention on the others.

"As far as we can tell, yes." Romanoff replied and Fury nodded.

"Where is Loki, I want him brought in for questioning." Fury ordered and Romanoff was the first to reply with a hard nod.

"He's right there." I told Fury in irritation as I pointed towards the possession-free god who was sitting in a lounge chair just out of the camera's sight with a scotch in his hand.

"But he's not going back on the Helicarrier." I stated crossing my arms.

Suddenly I smirked, recognizing the energy that was building up only a few feet away.

This was going to be fun.

"Says who!?" Fury yelled, fed up of all of it.

The engery spiked and a cool voice replied, "Says I."

We all turned to see a blacked haired woman is Asgardian attire with scarlet eyes standing in the middle of the room.

Hel was by her side and their resemblance was uncanny and unmistakable. Hel winked at me before sending Loki a pitying look that lasted for the briefest of seconds.

"Who are you?" Fury demanded and I snorted; he needed to learn some manners and how to control his temper.

Barton, Romanoff and Rogers all turned towards the new arrivals their hands slowly going for their weapons.

The woman rolled her eyes as Mortem appeared, invisible to most of the Mortals, with popcorn.

"I am Adayna, and I have come to take my husband home."

At this announcement 90% of the room looked t her in shock. I laughed and greeted the woman.

"Hey Adayna, it's been a while." I grinned and she grinned back at me.

"It has." Loki's wife replied with a nod and a small smile.

Loki was currently staring at his wife in what appeared to be fear. He looked like he wanted to bolt…and seemed to be considering it.

However, before anyone could do a thing Hel said, "Oh you aren't going anywhere Dad, because of you I have to work overtime for the next two weeks!"

The young goddess shrieked glaring at her father.

Mortem chuckled and continued to eat his popcorn.

I walked over and joined him with a smirk. Dad quickly spotted us and also made his way over, than Thor did as well.

Soon all four of us sat on the second couch eating bags of popcorn, waiting for the small family to start their drama.

I was right this was going to be fun.

* * *

Other Dimention far far away,  
Third POV

Fati muttered darkly to herself as she appeared in a dark place, where the only light came from distant stars.

"_**You have failed me child."**_ A deep dark voice ehcoered through the darkness.

Fati flinched but otherwise didn't repond as she said, _**"But I can do it. I can kill Aeqivalere!"**_

"_**Yes…you can. Your plans have all failed."**_ The dark voice chuckled and continued, _**"Now it is time for my plan. **_

"_**You must learn patents, small one. Or you will accomplish nothing."**_

"_**I am great!"**_ Fati protestefd before freezing in fear.

Soon her agonizing screams pierced the air as the voiced echoed.

"_**Oh, what is to come."**_ You could hear the grin in his voice. _**"Wonderful."**_

* * *

**Yeah, that'll be he last of the evil dude and Fati for a few (or more) chapters. I would've gotten this to you hours ago…I already had it written, but I was watching Iron Man 3 with my foster siblings…they'd never seen it.**

**OH! I will be doing this whenever I think of one…driving school was boring today so I drew this as a cartoon…it was so funny I had to put it in here!**

* * *

**Mini Adventures of Penny Stark #1**

**Tony walks into the living room in Avenger Tower, used to be Stark Tower, and freezes.**

**Sitting in the living room is a large bolder the size of a man…wearing Thor's cape and with Mjolnir next to it.**

**He turns to see Penny standing nearby and says,  
"Penny, why is Thor a rock?"**

**Penny looks up at her dad with large 'innocent' anime eyes and replies as a halo hovers above her head, "I was bored."**

**Tony just stares as Thor said, "Tis not amusing Lady Stark."**

**Tony then shakes his head, just another day.**

* * *

**Hope you all liked it,**

**thanks for everything,**

**Cp**


	36. Arg(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing, I own nothing, I own nothing, so DON'T BUG ME!**

* * *

I chuckled as I continued to watch Adayna scold both Thor and Loki for letting their childishness ruin things. She had been going at it for about forty-five minutes now and most of the scolding had to do with past events…such as their behavior over the past few centuries.

Then finally, she moved onto more resent topic.

"….what were you thinking!? Trying to take over Asgard, Loki I am ashamed of you, I thought that I had nocked some sense into your head after all of these years, but you know what? I guess I was wrong.

"I've seen the memory of your fight from…a friend….and both of you were acting like children! Loki you let go of your brother's hand when he was trying to save you! You are selfish Loki Odenson, did you even think about your family that loves you when you basically condemned yourself to a possible death? You were gone for months, _months_ if it wasn't for Hel's boss we wouldn't have known if you were even still alive! We were worried none stop for you, and I was searching every crack and pocket dimension in the Realms looking for you!

"Finally…._finally_….you show up, and what do I find you doing?! Trying to take over Midgard because you had taken a blow to your pride?!" Loki looked like someone had drained all of the blood from him and he was a second away from passing out as his wife's voice turned stone cold. "I thought your family meant more than a throne."

Loki looked down in same and I heard Tony gasp besides me, that was taking it too far.

"Adayna." I stated standing up and crossing my arms at the Asgard. "I understand your distress but your husband has been controlled…for how long we aren't sure…so I will ask t_hat you refrain from judging or punishing him because of his resent, __**uncontrollable **__actions._" I hissed and Adayna looked at me in wide eyes.

She realized that she had pissed off an Immortal…and then she realized that if I was talking about it then I was right, and she was wrong.

Adayna then looked over at her husband who was having a silent mental breakdown of self loathing and quickly knelt down and embraced him.

"I'm sorry love." I heard her softly whisper into his ear because of my advanced hearing.

"Do you know who was controlling him?" Adayna asked me since Loki was still not talking.

I shook my head but said into her mind, _**"Fati Immortalis."**_

The Asgardian's eyes widened at the news that an Immortal had done this before they darkened and tucked her lovers head beneath her chin.

"He will be coming home." Adayna stated turning her attention towards the holographic form of Fury who was surprised that she was no longer ranting. "When he is well, and has his strength back he will assist with cleaning up the Human city, while he did not purposefully harm you he still inflicted damage. So he shall help restore it. For if nothing else than you to see that my husband is a good man."

Fury opened his mouth, to protest most likely but thankfully Dad intervened.

"That sounded extremely reasonable." He stated nodding to the Asgardian. "I hope that Loki recovers quickly…and I truly am sorry that this has befallen your family."

Adayna examined Dad for a moment, her eyes flickering between us. Her eyes widened slightly as she noticed our resemblance before nodding to my father.

"Coming from the only Mortal in this room to have a family….I thank you." Adayna nodded before looking at me, silently asking me to take them home.

I then turned to give Mortem a pleading look, and he sighed before pushing Hel away…the two of them had been fighting over the last bag of popcorn.

Mortem, still mostly invisible, took hold of Loki's and Adayna's hands before nodding to me.

"Well," Adayna said giving me a soft smile, "It is time for us to take our leave. Thank you, young one, for returning my husband to me."

I nodded as Hel joined her parents and boss. "It is nothing, M'lady, I would do antying for Hel's family…she is like a Sister to me after all."

The Asgardens all knew the hidden meaning behind me words and gave me a smile before Mortem vanished with Loki and his family.

"I would like to thank you as well, for helping my brother." Thor stated as he nodded his head to me.

I shrugged and grinnd, "Like I said, Hel's my friend."

Then, Fury cleared his throated and I heard Romanoff mutter under her breath in Russian something that wasn't very nice.

Then Dad and I shared a look and groaned; now we had to deal with all of them.

And I had to deal with the rest.

* * *

I was literally ready to bash my head into a wall. Fury was pushing his luck.

It had been an hour since Loki and his family (except Thor) had left and we hadn't gotten anywhere!

The agents and Rogers all have their 'reports' on what happened while Dad and I caught up quietly in the background. It wasn't until the mention of the Tesseract that we snapped back into attention.

Fury wanted the Cube to stay on earth, and in SHIELD's hands, there was a lot of protest about that.

Thor and I were the first to speak up. Thor told him that the Tesseract belonged on Asgard and I told him that I would burn in hell before I let him have that Cube.

Dad let me handle it, eating the popcorn that Mortem left, until a random agent butted in and informed Fury that the Tessereact wasn't in the machine and that they had no clue where it was.

It was in my pocket, shrunken down and powered down, but they didn't need to know that.

Fury and turned on me and demanded to know what I did with it. he was seconds away from ordering Barton and Romanoff to attack me when Dad stepped in and took my side.

"The Tesseract should just go back to Asgard, that way we don't have to deal with mystical portals and aliens' trying to kill us all. Besides, they know the most about it, its theirs, they should keep it." Dad stated with a glare at Fury.

Rogers chose this moment to add his two cents into the mix. "Sir, I believe that Stark…and Miss Stark… are right. That Cube has caused us nothing but trouble from the start and I personally would be very happy to get the damn thing off of this planet."

It took another five minutes, but eventually Romanoff and Barton also agreed and Fury dropped the manner.

Then, after telling everyone gruffly good work, he dismissed his agents. He then turned to Dad and I and said, "Take the rest of the day off…but we are talking about this tomorrow. Oh and Thor, I recommend that you stick around for a few days."

Thor knew a warning when he saw one and nodded, just as the hologram faded.

"Arg." Dad sated as he collapsed onto the couch, completely exhausted.

"Arg." I agreed flopping onto the couch where Bruce was 'sleeping'. With a tired grin I started poking him. "Come on Bruce, mean ol' eyepatch is gone. You don't have to pretend anymore."

Bruce cracked and eyelid at me before sitting up with a grin.

"How'd you know?" he asked as everyone stared at him in shock, they seriously thought that he was sleeping.

I rolled my eyes and replied, "I'm me, duh."

Bruce and Dad chuckled at that while the agents rolled their eyes.

"Jarvis, order some Shawarma, and get the cleaning men up here…I actually want to be able to use my penthouse." Tony stated as he grinned at me.

"Right away sir," Jarvis replied instantly.

"Are you sure you want to try that stuff?" I asked as Tony leaned his head back against the sofa.

"Insania mentioned it and it sounds interesting." Dad replied and I heard Bruce chuckle.

"Dad…its Insania, how many times have I told you that she never has very good ideas." I stated before a whole mountain of water balloons landed on my head, appearing out of a swirl of mist.

"Sorry, no offence!" I said glancing up to the ceiling before scowling. Now I was soaked.

Dad, Thor and Bruce laughed at my misfortune before shaking their heads.

"I'm still trying it. Who wants to join me?" Dad asked of the others. Barton, Romanoff, and Rogers all tried to get out of it but eventually Dad and I roped them into it.

It had only taken a half an hour for the place to deliver, even with all of the destruction.

I personally found the weird…whatever it was….to be…well, not my taste. Apparently only Thor was able to eat more than a few bites.

Dad put down his fork, (we all just ate out of the to-go boxes) and glanced over at Romanoff that everyone fell silent.

Romanoff stiffened slightly as everyone put together what this was about.

She opened her mouth to say…something but Dad was faster.

"I don't want to hear your reasons. I already had trust issues with you before, and you killing my daughter didn't help. Now, I will work with you, and I will be civil towards you as long as we are on this team. But if you want a shred of respect, trust, or anything from me you'll have to earn it from the both of us. If Pen wasn't still alive I can assure you that you wouldn't be either.

"I'm gonna promise you two things." Tony stated codlly and Romanoff swallowed. Dad could be scary when he wanted to be. "One, if you ever even _think_ about harming my daughter again you will regret it. And, don't expect any peace in this tower until things are fixed. I will prank you."

Romanoff sighed and seemed accept her fate.

We dumped the rest of the meal as Tony stood (with a wince I knew he was still injured) and said, "Now, I'll show you to your rooms for the time being."

"Huh?" nearly everyone but Bruce said.

I rolled my eyes and lead Bruce out of the living room and towards the elevator.

"Well, we just saved the world together the least I can do is let you crash at my place. I have the space." Tony shrugged.

Just as I was about to press the button, the elevator dinged and a tear streaked, red eyed, and makeup smeared Pepper stumbled out.

Her devastated expression changed as soon as her eyes caught sight of me and Dad, it changed to one of pure fury.

I gulped and I heard Dad do so as well.

"Eh…hi Pepper…" Dad sad lamely, rubbing the back of his head.

I then wanted to go bash my head again, bad timing.

"ANTHONY!" Pepper yelled and everyone took a step back, even the agents were scared of her.

Pepper was pissed.

* * *

**There you go you guys, hope you all liked it and I'm pretty sure that there are less typos then the last chapt.**

**Hope you all are enjoying it, Loki will be back sooner or later, don't worry.  
Cp**


	37. Harry James Potter(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I don't own anything. This chapter is dedicated to Balinor88 who's review sparked this idea. Thanks!**

* * *

It took less than two seconds to come up with a plan and I mentally smirked before letting my face darken.

Pepper opened her mouth to continue her rant when I ran up and threw my arm around her, letting tears fall from my eyes.

"Pen, what wrong?" She asked instantly concerned and I knew that the others were also extremely confused.

"Mu….Pepper, please don't be mad at Daddy…he was gonna call you…but…but…." I pretended to try not to cry and continued, "But…he was worried about me….see….I was really, really hurt and…and…"

My little game work and instantly Pepper yelling at Dad was the least of her worries.

"What happened?" she asked kneeling down to meet my eyes.

I let my green eyes widened and although I noticed that she took note of my eye color she didn't mention it.

"See…..I was on the Helicarrier…it was so cool….I was invisible of course, but somehow SHIELD found out I was there and…." I paused as Pepper's face paled.

"Did they hurt you honey?" She asked glancing over at Dad who was just staring wide eyed.

I nodded weakly and let more tears fall. "I got shot." I mumbled under my breath knowing that Pepper wouldn't be able to hear me.

"What was that?" She asked as her worry grew.

"I…I got shot…in my Arc…." I mumbled louder and Pepper's grasp on my tightened as she pulled me into a hug.

I pretended to sob as she tried to sooth me.

"Who shot you sweetie? Can you tell me." She pulled back slightly so I could meet her eyes.

I let my eyes flicker over to Romanoff for a second but Pepper caught it, and I almost smirked.

"Did anything else happen?" Pepper asked while glaring at Romanoff who was now looking conserned.

I paused before nodding slowly, "F…Fury thought I died….Hulk woke up 'cause I'm his friend so….Fury pushed everyone out but me and Bruce…and… and….made the whole room fall out of the sky."

Pepper froze and I knew that she was now planning on yelling at Fury as well. Then, I looked up with a lighter look on my face before saying, "But Mortem saved me! He helped me get better and I was able to help Daddy and keep _him_ alive."

"Good girl." Pepper said, had she been more awake, or less frazzled she might have taken my story with a grain of salt, but she didn't which worked for me.

Pepper then rounded on Romanoff who had been trying to sneak away through the emergency stairs.

"Oh no, you come back here! I want to know why you shot my daughter!" Pepper screamed before Romanoff fled with Pepper right on her heals. Barton quickly followed and I knew that soon both Fury and Romanoff would get what they deserved.

Tony, Thor and Rogers were all staring at me in shock, and I wiped my eyes and smirked.

"You owe me for that Dad." I stated crossing my arms.

Dad laughed loudly and pulled me into a hug, "Definitely…you just saved me from Pepper right there….you're a brilliant actress, you know that?"

I chuckled and said, "Oh, I know. Oh, Bruce all of the annoying people are gone now, you don't have to pretend to be asleep anymore."

Rogers and Dad gapped at me as Bruce sat up with a chuckle.

"How'd you know?" He asked me with an amused smile.

I shrugged and replied, "I'm just special."

"Won't argue with you there," Bruce stated and both Dad and Thor nodded.

Rogers glanced around at all of us before walking out of the room mutter, "Starks are going to drive me insane."

"Yes we will!" I called after him and the crash that followed told me that he ran into something in his shock.

There was a moment of silence before Thor said, "that performance was truly magnificent, even my brother would have had a problem finding fault in it."

Since Loki was the god of mischief, and lies, that was high praise.

There was another moment of silence before Dad asked, "so…explanations now or…?"

I sighed and threw up a few shields, powered from both of my Core's.

I nodded and everyone took a seat. "Thor knows part of this tale, but I ask that you don't interrupt me until the end…"

Dad decided then to interrupted….curse his joking nature and he said, "Your like them, Insania, Mortem…the others we saw today…aren't you?"

I nodded slowly as Bruce put the pieces together in his head.

"I'm not completely human…well, I am in some cases, I have a human form for some reason not even resent changes has changed that but, well…I'm getting ahead of myself.

"For you to know the full story I have to begin at the beginning…and it all began long ago, with a baby named Harry Potter."

* * *

Pen's Explanation

Harry Potter wasn't born in this world, though he was born in one very similar. But there was a major difference; this world had Magic, but not the magic you know of. This world had a magic that was able to be weld by humans.

It was out of a story, a whole hidden society with magical creatures, witches, wizards, and things beyond your wildest dreams.

But this world was far from perfect; it was ruled by prejudices and corruption. A powerful dark wizard rose to power, and fearing the words of a prophecy he tried to kill the infant Harry Potter, only to fail. But the boy's parents did fall to his wand.

The Dark Lord Voldemort, or also known to a few as Tom Riddle fled, little more than a ghost and would remain unseen for ten years.

The boy was sent to live his non-magical aunt and uncle who hated anything 'unnatural'. His childhood was far from pleasant and on his eleventh birthday he was accepted into a school of magic called Hogwarts and welcomed into the world where everyone worshiped him as the hero the-boy-who-lived.

The six years he spent at school weren't quiet to say the least. With mysteries and near death experiences at least once a year and someone always out to kill him, Harry was forced to grow up fast.

When he was fifteen he found out about the prophecy that basically said that either Voldemort or himself would have to kill the other.

When he was seventeen he set out on a quest with his two best friends, as the war led by a newly resurrected Voldemort took Britain by surprise. Finally they managed to destroy Voldemort, and Harry thought that he would be able to settle down and have a life. Find a wife, have a few kids, and such.

But he was unable to, for while he was on that quest, unknowingly at the time, he had united and claimed ownership to three ancient items that held enormous power.

He didn't want them, but they claimed him as their Master, and though it took a few years for him to notice, they changed him in many ways.

He stopped aging, his magic increased, and soon people thought that he was the next dark lord. He found out that his wife was cheating on him and that his year old son wasn't even his.

Harry withdrew into himself as time moved on, and the normal world met the magical. There was unsteady peace for a century before the first of the Magical/Mundane World Wars started.

He lived through them all, trying to keep the descendants of his old friends alive, and slowly watched as the world destroyed itself. He hated the artifacts that had given him his powers, and hoped that someday, he would find a way to die.

When the world was destroyed in World War Five, he thought that it was the end. Btu it was only the beginning.

He was reincarnated, and when he died complexly for the first time in his Second Life, he remembered it all.

Eventually, after a lot of confusion and misleading, it was explained to him that he was now an Immortal.

Immortals are a race of higher beings that were created to govern, guide, and at times, help the Mortal worlds.

But unknown to him at the time, another Immortal, who ruled over the Realm of Fate, was jealous and tried in all of her power to make the newest Immortal have a hard time.

It would take too long to go over every Life that the youngest Immortal lived through, but she experienced many things, and lived many lives.

Eventually, she let her hate for the Death Immoral drop, and decided that it wasn't his fault that she became Immortal, even if the artifacts that started it all were his.

Eventually they became friends, and later, Bonded.

The youngest Immortal was perhaps the most powerful Immortal of them all, yet because of the others tricks, she didn't know that and only was able to use the smallest amount of her powers, and was unable to stop her reincarnation.

She wasn't supposed to be reborn over and over again. She was supposed to be able to go wherever she was needed, like her Siblings were, but because of Fati…the other Immortal's tricks she was forced to live many, many, lives to fulfill what she was supposed to.

Even after a Millennia, the young Immortal was under Fati's control and she was getting quite miserable and had lost almost all interest in life.

She had been many different things, including Godfather to a certain God of Mischief, and Uncle to a certain Thunder god.

In every life that she lived, she was always on the edge between life and death somehow, wither with illness, lots of near death experiences, or something else, she always was.

However, it was only until her most recent life that that small fact helped her.

She managed to not die completely until late into her teenage years, her longest time without her memories yet. It was nice, not being burdened down by everything that had happened.

When she did die, her Sister Insania interfered, and tricking Fati into thinking that she was working for her, only let her younger sister have a very small select amount of her memories.

Because of her sister's actions, she was able to look at Fati's actions through new eyes, and when she finally did get her memories and powers back, she was able to free herself and realize that she had been used.

She confronted Fati, and Fati admitted to much but they were unable to stop her and she fled. It is unknown what will happen to the wayward immortal who likes manipulation far too much.

* * *

"…Dad, I'm so much more then Penny Stark…" I took a deep breath and continued, "I was originally born as Harry James Potter, and I have been many names in many different worlds.

"But I usually go by Aequivalere….I am an Immortal, and Balance is my Realm."

Silence fell over the room as I finished talking. Thor was taking everything the best, after all he already knew about Immortals.

After a few minutes Dad said, "Wait…you used to be a boy!" he exclaimed in horror, and I couldn't help it.

I laughed.

* * *

…**.the explanation was actually harder to write then I thought it would be. Don't worry, Bruce and Tony will have plenty of questions next chapter.**

**Hope you enjoyed it, thanks for everything, everyone.**

**Cp**


	38. No Matter What(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I am not famous; I am not a billionaire, or even millionaire, so I don't own anything. So leave me be.**

* * *

While I laughed my head off, Bruce looked at the horrified Tony in shock.

"Out of all of that, her gender change is the only thing that registered to you?" Bruce asked as Thor shook his head in mirth.

"I agree, I thought that the revelation of your daughters Bondage would have left you speechless, I appear that I was mistaken." Thor stated chuckling and Dad and I both froze.

I stopped laughing and glared heatedly at Thor as Tony's mind jumped into overtime.

"Thor!" I exclaimed in anger, I was hoping that Dad wouldn't catch that!

"My apologies E're." Thor said looking like a child who was caught doing something he should not.

"What do does Thor mean…and just was does being 'Bonded' mean?" he demanded, and I could tell by the look in his eye that he already knew, he was just trying to deny it.

"Um…." I hesitated and scratched the back of my head nervously. I had a feeling that he was going to flip out over this more than me not being human….sorta….and the rest…but I could be wrong.

"Well, basically a Bonding is….well….the joining of two souls for the rest of eternity…" My voice started out loud but as I continued my statement I got quieter and quieter until I was barely whispering the end.

"You're MARRIED!" Dad screamed his eyes bugging out of his head and his face paling until he was as white as a sheet.

"Um….technically marriage is a Mortal term…." I mumbled avoiding his eyes. However, when Bruce started chuckling I looked up to see that Dad was passed out on the couch….

He had fainted.

"Oh, I'm never gonna let him live this one down." I stated shaking my head.

"So…you're some super powered immortal that controls the universe?" Bruce asked trying to wrap his head around it.

"I don't control everything." I stated leaning back against the couch. "I only control a very small amount of things, and even then I only influence them. It's not like I can wave my hand and make a whole world vanish…some of the Elders….Immortals that have been around for a _very_ long time, have that power, but I sure don't." I stated and Thor nodded his head to my words.

"Well, not yet anyway." I looked up to see Mortem standing casually behind me and wondered how long he had been there.

"Pay up." Mortem stated with a smirk, glancing at my Dad. I groaned remembering the bet but gave him the information he wanted.

He grinned evilly as I gave him his desired blackmail before kissing the top of my head and vanishing.

"Huh?" Bruce asked, barely able to form words.

I chuckled, feeling bad for my Sister and explained, "Mortem and I bet about Dad's reaction when he found out about our Bonding….Mortem bet that he would faint within the first five minutes. I bet that he would try to kill/castrate Mortem."

"Ah," Bruce said looking slightly pale.

"What did you bet on?" He asked, having not seen my hand anything to my 'husband'.

"Oh, I had some blackmail material on our Sister that he wanted, our bet was mostly around that." I said and sighed, Vitam was gonna kill me but, oh well.

Thor chuckled and I smirked, knowing that he was thinking of all of the bets I would make on Asgard…I usually won. Or if I lost, I would still win in some form or another.

"…wait; did you just say _our_ sister?" Bruce asked, realizing the words I had used.

I sighed, and was hoping that I would be able to explain this without anyone freaking out over the thought of incest.

"Every Immortal thinks the other Immortals as their family, for we have none of our own…well, usually. Mortem and Vitam are twin Souls, a very rare occurrence, but we aren't really related at all. We have just come to see one another as siblings, except for those that Bond….obviously." I stated and after a moment Bruce nodded.

"Make sense I guess." He stated and Thor spoke.

"Have you been well, E're, in the time that has passed?"

I paused for a moment before looking at the still form of my father, "No life has been a picnic, but I have to say…this one has been…the most enjoyable one that I have had in a very long time."

Thor gave me a small smile as he said, "I am glad that you are happy."

I nodded in thanks but was kept from saying anything else as my shields fell and Pepper stormed back into the room.

She looked more herself, and didn't seem so upset, and I was glad that she got most of her anger out of her system.

"You used me to calm me down and to save Tony's butt." She stated giving me a slightly annoyed look.

I pretended to look insulted and said, "Hey! I didn't just do it for Dad; I did it for me too! Fury and Romanoff were getting on my nerves. I would've sic'ed you on Rogers as well but I couldn't come up with a valid reason."

"Was any of that even true?!" Pepper demanded to know, giving me a glare.

"Of course. I wouldn't lie about dying." I drawled and Pepper paled.

"You died! You said that Tony just thought that you had!" She shrieked in horror.

I simply shrugged and said, "Dating" Bruce snorted and I glared at him, "does come with its perks."

She hummed but didn't respond and instantly became conserved as she spotted Dad's passed out form.

"So, how long did it take you to figure it out?" I asked wondering how long my act lasted.

Pepper smirked at me and replied, "It came to me as soon as I started chasing Natasha."

I laughed and shook my head of course she did.

"I'm not a dog that you can sic on people who have upset you, Penny." Pepper scolded, trying to parent me.

I shrugged and she sighed before looking towards Dad and saying "What happened now?"

"Oh," I paused before smiling and said, "He just didn't take some news too well."

Pepper stared at me before smiling widely at the blackmail material here. "He fainted?!"

"Indeed." Thor stated with a smile, reckoning the look on Pepper's face. He had seen it many times on both his mother's and Adayna's face many a time.

"Uhuh." I confirmed as Bruce started laughing again.

"Jarvis…" Pepper started but the AI was ahead of her.

"I already have several photos stored in numerous places; I suspect that you wish me to keep them a secret from him?" Jarvis asked and I fell back laughing again.

Pepper was the only one who managed not to become hysterical at the AI's announcement.

"Yea, Jarvis, thank you." Pepper said and then let her own laughter bring her down.

"It is my pleaser Miss Potts." The AI replied with humor in his voice.

It was then that Dad woke up, he sat up took one look around before giving me puppy dog eyes and pleading,

"Can I have a drink…please?"

"No," I replied in a monotone.

Dad sighed wearily as he rubbed his temple. He wasn't going to mention the whole marriage…Bonding…thing around Pepper, he knew better. But I knew that we were going to talk about it sooner or later.

"Okay, so who wants a tour?" I asked as I jumped to my feet.

"Lead the way." Thor stated as they both got to their feet as well.

Dad gave me a strange look before also climbing to his feet.

"Labs first." He stated and I nodded, that was what I was planning.

"Of course."

We could pretend everything was normal for a while…for Pepper at least.

* * *

After the full tour, which left Bruce almost giddy and even Thor impressed, we entered the destroyed living room.

"Hmm…" I thought to myself as I surveyed the damage. It really wasn't all that much.

"I wonder…" I muttered before waving my hand and thinking a quick spell.

"_Reparo." _

It was like time had reversed. Everyone watched in awe as the living room seemingly repaired itself and within a minuet it was back to its shiny, impressive self.

"Wow." Pepper breathed as Tony looked around with a smile on his face.

"Amazing." Bruce breathed and Thor beamed at me.

"Well done." He nodded and I gave him an airy grin.

"No big." I replied and Pepper looked down at me and asked,

"Was that some form of telekinesis? I didn't know you had that power."

I glanced at the men for a second before replying, "Something like that….and it's new…sorta."

Buy now, dusk was falling and I was ready to go curl up and go to sleep, but first I wanted to do one more thing…

With a wave of my hand three buckets of paint appeared over the boys head and before they could do anything they dumped their contents on their heads.

Thor was now covered in green, Bruce with red, and Dad with purple. They all looked at each other in shock before spinning around towards me.

"PENNY!" Dad yelled as I fled the room giggling.

We needed some normality…even if our lives were far from it.

* * *

Bruce's POV

I yawned as I glanced around the buzzing Tower, it had come back to life very easily and now, from the inside, you could pretend that the whole thing with Loki had never happened.

But it did, and things would now never be the same.

Sure, things had changed the most for the Stark family, but I had a feeling that it wasn't gonna be just me that the big guy anymore.

Hulk grumbled in his agreement but I could tell that he was happy, if not a bit hesitant, about our new place.

Tony and Pen had already shown us our room, and while it was simple Pen had told me to do whatever I wanted with it and that I had a week or she would design it for me.

The idea that we were accepted was something else that was really strange, but not so much as the information of Penny.

After chasing her around for a hour or so and getting covered in paint, Pepper had gone to bed letting the four of us to finish our conversation.

Pen explained a few more things, like her power boost, how she was the youngest, that her powers might be a bit wonky for a few days till she remembered them all…

Oh, and did I forget the fact that she now had her magic back?

Yeah, she seemed really happy about that.

After Tony had carried Pen to bed, she had fallen sleep on the couch we all just sat in silence before Thor asked

"What is on your mind, Man of Iron?"

There could be a lot of things on his mind, I realized, the whole Immortal thing was hard for _me_ to swallow and I wasn't the girl's father!

Not to mention that his whole world seemed to have been turned upside down on top of him once more….add to the fact that his little girl was married and I would be surprised if there wasn't anything on his mind.

"…just trying to wrap my head around it all." Tony admitted and I nodded at his statement.

"You and me both." I said and Hulk grunted in agreement. "Oh, and the Big Guy." I added on.

I peered at Tony when he didn't say anything more and finally spotted the dark look just peeking through the man's shields.

"Something's' bugging you." I stated instead of asking what it was I just remained silent. Sometimes, the best way to get answers was to let them come to you.

"What has you troubled? The Lady Penny? The Lady Pepper? My Brother? Nick Fury?" Thor questioned the billionaire when he didn't speak.

Tony sighed and looked up at us with pain filled eyes, "It's just…my little girl isn't so little…and…well…."

I realized where his train of thought was going and I said, "you're worried that she won't need you anymore."

Tony sighed and glanced over at his bar, and I knew that he truly wanted a drink and was amazed at his resolve.

"I mean, she's an all-powerful entity or something! She's been around longer then even I want to comprehend…why would she need me?" Tony grumbled as he fell deeper into his depressed pit.

"I've known her for what, little over a year? She didn't even mention how old she really is, for Christ's sake she's freaking _married_! Why would she need a father? A mortal one at that."

"I do not think that Lady Stark has ceased needing your assistance, Man of Iron. She may seem to be quite capable, and it is true that she has lived many years, I believe that she still needs you to stand by her side." Thor stated gravely and you could tell that he looked worried for her.

"I have to agree…while I don't know her we well we you two, I don't think that she's grown up yet. No matter what the age." I stated and I could tell that we weren't really getting through to the man.

"They are right; you would do well to listen to them." We turned around to see Mortem, Hulk growled but I shushed him, leaning against the wall.

Tony just looked back down and grumbled, "She doesn't need me."

"Yes, yes she does." Mortem snapped appearing right in Tony's face in an instant. "I have been by her side for many years, but not once have I seen her this happy and carefree not even in her first lives. Now, you pull yourself together, for while this might seem like the end it truly is only the beginning.

"Fati has problems with your daughter, my _Bonded_. She has survived many things, but I do not think she can survive this one…without you."

Mortem's words cut through Tony like jelly and almost instantly you could see the change. His eyes hardened and he sat up straighter as he said,

"Together then?" he extended his hand towards the Immortal and Mortem gazed at it for moment before taking it.

"Together." He confirmed and I felt like I had to speak up.

"I'm not going anywhere; Penny's basically the only family I have."

"She is family." Thor stated seriously and we all shared a look.

"A friend." I turned to see...Hel; I believe it was, appear next to the Immortal with a determined look on her face.

"A Sister." Another girl arrived and I instantly knew that she was Immortal. Though I wasn't sure who, but if I had to guess, then it would be Insania based on her appearance.

We all gazed at each other and nodded in acceptance.

In some form or another, Penny was family to us, and we would help and protect her to the end.

No matter what.

Hulk growled in agreement.

* * *

Third POV

That night, unknown to just a few, a pack was made between Mortal, Immortal, and Asgardian. They all swore a pact, to protect and stand by the one Soul that meant the most to them.

They didn't know it at the time, and it would take a while for them to realize…

But by uniting together, they changed many Paths, and set things back on track.

Far away in Cor in a white palace that didn't seem to have a solid form, an Elder Immortal smiled as they all agreed.

Things were right indeed.

* * *

**LOOKIE! This is the longest chapter you people have had in a while. I actually really liked how this chapter turned out. Hoped you all liked it, sorry I didn't jump into explanations all that much…couldn't write it right. Just pretend that I did amazing scenes and all questions were answered. **

**If you have a specific question you want answered just pop me a review or PM and I'll see what I can do.**

**Hope you all enjoyed it and that Tony's reactions were realistic. **

**Good night, **

**Cp**


	39. Memory(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**Too tired to protest, just know that I will kill you if you think I own a thing.**

* * *

The next few days were…calmer…to say the least.

Thor decided that he would return to Asgard to return the Cube (which I only told Dad, Bruce and Thor I had…but Fury suspected) and then he would travel between the two worlds.

It was easy getting Thor back home without SHIELD knowing, I just took him. It didn't even take five minutes.

Bruce now lived in the tower, and seemed very happy about it. He had his own floor, and had been given his own labs as well. Half of his floor had been Hulkified so that Hulk could wake up without breaking everything in sight.

Rogers, Romanoff, and Barton had returned to SHIELD and were grumpy. They were still mad at me and Dad for some reason. But we left them alone and I knew, well I had a feeling that they would come around eventually.

Dad, Mortem and I sat down and talked…sorta well, I tried not to make Dad faint again while the boys talked about me…yeah; it lasted like five minutes before I put my foot down.

With the X-men's help it didn't take long to get NY back in good condition, it wouldn't be fixed for a while but a few highly powered reparo's every few days really did wonders.

SHIELD did a wonderful job keeping the knowledge of what really happened in NY a secret, and while everyone knew that there had been an extraterrestrial attack, no one knew that Loki had anything to do with it.

It had taken many heated arguments with SHIELD's council for that to happen, and I even had to step in once I was tired of my Soul fluctuating with their arguments so much.

The Tower was easy to fix, and within a few days it was back to being its shiny new self.

Soon after the tower was fixed Rogers was 'forced' to move in. Fury had told him that in all of the confusion with Loki that SHIELD had forgotten to pay the rent of his apartment and that it would be better for him to just stay at the Tower from now on.

Dad and I had shared a look at that news and agreed that it was a bunch of bull.

Once the awkwardness of being around Steve wore off…he wasn't all that bad. It hadn't beent hat hard to feel Fati's fading influence on the man and reasoned that that was why he had been such an ass.

Fati did always ruin everything.

Speaking of my dear Sister, she had seemed to have vanished.

Every Immortal had standing orders from Father himself that Fati was to be found and brought before him. But that was the problem, no one could find her.

I knew that she was still out there, and I knew that she would come back for me eventually but now I was just happy to be me and enjoy my life.

Mortem had stated a few days after the whole NY battle, that while was defintelty more powerful, more connected, and more Immortal…I still wasn't one.

That had pissed me off of course, after all of that and I still wasn't competley there?

Mortem, Insania and I were looking into the reason, but so far hadn't found anything.

I was still supriesed at how well Dad took in all of the Immortal facts, but I tried not to think about it too much or my brain would start to melt.

Sometimes, I thought I'd see a flash of emotion on Dad's face whenever he thought that no one was looking. Part of me really wanted to find out what was going on in his head, another part of me was determined to fix my own mind first.

After the whole NY thing, I discovered that my mind was a mess. Piles and heaps of information and memories jumbled into piles left and right.

Since I had learned Occlumency properly a few decades after Snape had _tried_ to teach me, Hogwars' library was how I organized my thoughts and memories. Each book upon the shelves was a different memory, and I had thousands if not millions of them.

I didn't realize how bad my mind was….until after I had that break down.

* * *

Few days before

I was so totally bored. Dad and Bruce were in the lab, Rogers was in the gym, and Pepper was out. Mortem was busy, Insania….not available, and Hel, well if Mortem was busy it probably meant that she was as well.

I lay sprawled out on the couch with a sigh….this stunk.

No sooner had I thought that then a large burst of fire appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the room. When the fire died Fawks hovered there, in all of his fiery majestic beauty. Clutched in his talons was a silver vile and as he dropped it into my lap, my eyes widened in shock.

It was a memory…from my First Life…how did he get this?

"Where did you find this Fawks?" I asked but the bird only trilled in response.

Shaking my head in amusement I stared at the small vile in my hand. There was something important in here; something that I needed to know.

Pooling my powers around me a carved stone bowl appeared in my lap. It wasn't a pensieve but it would work just as well.

Taking a deep break I uncorked the vile and the silvery vapor like liquid fell into the bowl.

I cast a look at Fawks, wondering if I should do this. His musical reply was all I needed and taking a deep break, I slid into the memory.

* * *

_It surprised me, seeing where I was. I was in the headmasters' office in Hogwarts, but it was different than the other times that I had seen it._

_Most of the fancy trinkets that Dumbledore once had where gone, and the homey little items that Minerva had were also gone._

_My heart clenched as I realized just who's office I was in and who I was about to see._

_I finally managed to look up and my heart almost froze as I caught sight of my old friend._

_Hermione Granger, the Last Hogwarts Headmistress ever…she had defended the castle till it fell._

_A grave feeling settled into my stomach as she seemed to look right at me. This wasn't a memory of something that happened. It was a recorded memory so that the dead and the living could interact. _

"_Hello Harry," The sound of her voice sent a sharp shred of pain through my mental body. Even after all of these years, I still missed her._

"_If you are watching this…" ha, I had been right, it was one of those kinds of things. _

"_Then something happened, truly it could've been anything. But if you are reviewing this memory…then something horrible happened, and I am sorry that you are the only one left._

"_I've known for a very long time Harry that you are special, too special. Harry, your more special then you know._

"_I'm not a seer, and I won't pretend to be, but you don't have to See to see what is happening around the world. This fragile peace with the Mundane World won't last…and I have a feeling that against all of their resources will decimate the Magical one._

"_I can't pretend to know just what it is you're doing, or what you do when you are in trouble but I know that one day, you'll look back and see what went wrong, what failed, what happened, and what could have been better._

"_I'm here to tell you Harry, not to blame yourself. You're not perfect, you're only human. I want you to take care of yourself Harry…and live your life to the fullest… for everyone deserves some happiness._

"_Take care of yourself Harry, and know that no matter what no one blames you and that I don't blame you._

"_Good Bye Harry….and thank you."_

* * *

end all flashback

I had sobbed for twenty minutes straight before I was able to pull myself together. I became determined to get myself straightened out and for the rest of that way, I spent cleaning out my mental Hogwarts.

I didn't change or get rid of anything, I just resorted what needed to be sorted, and I changed the interface of how I recalled things.

Usually I had it set up that when I thought of something the book was summoned to a table that I interpreted as my thoughts. Now…now it was all Starkinized.

The interface was now holographic and displayed everything. I was amazed to find out that I was able to recall things faster and that I was able to move through a crowd without one person touching me.

My thought process doubled and I no longer had to focus on one life to bring up those memories…it was really simple.

I also realized that because all of my blocks from Fati had been taken off…I was much more childlike. But I didn't mind all that much…Dad didn't seem to.

* * *

**Sorry its short & for mistakes….tooo tired….**

**Night.**

**Cp**


	40. What on Earth?(unbeta'd)

Awakening

***pout* do you still think I own anything?**

* * *

"But I don't want them here Daddy!" I whined glaring at the SHIELD agents, Fury had 'posted' them at Stark Tower for our 'protection' but I knew that it was wrong.

He wanted to keep an eye on me and Daddy and try and force the guys to become the avengers for them.

"I know, but right now it would be best if we didn't get on SHIELD's bad side." Dad reasoned with me and I pouted.

"Fine." I stated glaring at them, "but I don't like it."

"You don't have to." Dad sighed before showing Romanoff and Barton to their new rooms.

I actually didn't have a problem with Barton…Romanoff and I still had issues though.

I pouted for the rest of the day, I knew I was being childish but I couldn't help it…ever since my blocks had come off I just acted my Soul age... which was young.

I sighed as I flopped down onto the couch and tried to think of a prank that would cause Romanoff to freak out….

An evil grin appeared on my face.

"_**Hey, Sis, want to cause some mayhem?"**_ I sent the message telepathically to Insania.

I waited a few moments to hear back from her, and smirked as she replied, _**"Of course, what is going to be inflicted upon those who have annoyed us?"**_

I laughed hysterically and replied, _**"Oh, you'll love it."**_

* * *

Bruce POV

I knew that Pen was having a hard time with the agents now in the tower; it had taken us a week and a half to start warming up to Steve. Knowing that the Immortal girl was most likely on the couch I went off to find her.

When I found her sprawled across the couch laughing hysterically I immediately turned on my heel and walked away.

I had only heard that laugh once and the next day Fury was female, had cat years, with pink hair for two days.

"_I'm staying out of this." _I commented to Hulk and I could feel him nodding to me in agreement.

If there was one person you didn't want to mess with, it was Pen…and I had a feeling that Romanoff was about to learn that.

* * *

Third POV  
Two hours later

"Guys, have you seen Pen around, I haven't seen her in a few hours." Tony asked as he walked into the kitchen were most of the Tower's occupants were, considering it was dinner time.

"I haven't seen her." Rogers shrugged and continued to scarf down his pizza.

"Nope." Barton stated giving Tony an apologetic look while Romanoff just said, "no."

"…I saw her laughing a few hours ago…" Bruce muttered looking up from the paper he had been reading.

Tony froze and turned to Bruce with a worried look on his face, "On a scale of one to ten…how similar was her laugh to Insania's?"

Everyone at the table froze and were looking extremely worried. They had all met Insania by now, since she and Hel almost always were at the Tower.

Bruce thought for a moment before replying gravely, "Twelve."

Tony cursed under his breathe and now everyone was looking at the boxes of Pizza with fear, who knew what Penny had done to it.

"Jarvis, where is Penny?!" Tony exclaimed walking swiftly out of the kitchen, they needed to find that Immortal, and now.

"My scans are having trouble locating her…but I believe that she is somewhere on level sixteen." Jarvis reported and Romanoff froze in horror.

Everyone had been given their own level, and sixteen was hers. Who knew what she was doing down there.

"If touches my stuff she's dead." Romanoff growled before stalking towards the elevator.

"If you touch my daughter _your_ dead!" Tony yelled back before following the red head. Everyone else shared a look before quickly following.

* * *

"Where is she!?" Romanoff growled after the Avengers had searched the whole level, and four other levels with no success.

"I don't know!" Tony replied, his eyebrow twitching. While the billionaire wouldn't admit it he was extremely worried. His daughter had an Immortal with a grudge after her…of course he was worried.

"Maybe she's in her room?" Bruce suggested causing Barton and Rogers to groan, they weren't as worried as Bruce and Tony because they didn't know about the Immortal stuff. Also they liked the kid and didn't have a grudge like Romanoff did so really they thought this whole search was pointless.

"Jarvis!" Tony declared as they all set out to search the rest of the tower. "Where on earth…"

However, his question was interrupted as his cellphone rang. Pulling the plastic holographic device out of his pocket he quickly answered it, seeing Pepper's pic on screen.

"Hey….what? No…what do you….are you….yeah…no, no, I'll be right there." Tony hung up and looked at the others with a worried expression.

"Pepper just got home….she has Pen but…she says something wrong."

Nothing more was said as they all sped off (at a stiff pace in Romanoff's case) towards the living room.

They all feared the worse; however nothing could prepare them for the sight that they met as they ran into the room.

* * *

"Pepper! What's wrong where…" Tony froze seeing Pepper looking under the couch. "What are you doing?"

"Looking for Pen." Pepper commented as if on the weather.

"Huh?" everyone else responded as Pepper rolled her eyes and climbed to her feet.

"You have no idea how surprised I was to walk into the living room and seeing Pen like that… The sight almost gave me a heart attack! God, I don't know what happened, but you better be able to fix it Tony or…" The rest of her speech was cut off as a now frantic Tony asked,

"What? What do you mean?!" he was getting hysterical at this point and Pepper's eyes widened. "What's wrong, Pepper, tell me!"

Pepper opened her mouth but before could say anything a gasp from behind him caused him to spin around. Bruce and everyone else were gapping at something…

"What?" he asked thinking that they we looking at him, that was, until he noticed that their eyes were drawn downwards.

With a weird feeling in his stomach he also turned and looked down only to freeze in shock.

His heart almost stopped at the sight that met his eyes, there in a little green dress with a bow in her hair was a miniature Penny…

Not like doll or hologram…but she as smaller….

Her eyes were bigger, her curls softer and she her toothy smile was one that only a small child had.

"Bloody hell." Tony muttered taking a page out of his daughter's book.

His now two year old daughter.

"How…" he didn't get to finish his question as baby Penny flung herself at him and wrapped her strong little arms around his leg.

"Daddy!" she squealed in joy, "Up Daddy, up!" she cried pulling on his sleeve.

It too a minute for Tony's mind to start working again but when it did he slowly picked his mini daughter up and looked at her in shock.

"What on earth?" Tony breathed looking around the room at all of the confused and shocked expressions.

"I have no idea what on earth is going on here…but why is Miss Stark a two years old?" Rogers asked snapping out of it next.

"This…is so beyond me." Bruce admitted before smiling as Penny spotted him and exclaimed,

"Un'ca B'uce!" She giggled and practically leapt from her Dad's arms to Bruce's.

"Uncle Bruce?" Bruce repeated in disbelief before smiling, she was just too cute.

"Huh," Romanoff stated before turning and walking away, massaging her temples.

Penny frowned as she watched Romanoff go and tears started welling up in her eyes.

Barton was actually the first one to notice this so he stepped closer ad said, "Oh, don't worry about that ol' grouch Pen, she just is all grumpy because she didn't get her nap."

At this, Pen giggled and Tony sent Barton a thankful look as the tears were adverted. He barely knew what to do with a teenager let alone a two year old.

"Okay…just how on earth did this happen?" Tony asked as he took Penny back into his arms.

"That is a very good question." Pepper nodded as she started playing with Penny from behind his back. "But she's so cute!"

"I'm not even sure." They all turned to see Insania laying upside down on the couch.

"Insania…did you turn her into a baby?" Tony asked having the most experience dealing with the strange girl.

"Nope." She happily replied, "I don't know how to do that."

Tony sighed and Bruce decided that it was time to step in, "Then how is Pen a two years old?"

"I know that." Insania stated airily and Tony looked like he wanted to smack himself in the head.

"Then why didn't you say so?" Rogers asked and Insania flipped off the couch replying,

"You guys asked if I did it, not if I know how it was done." She stated with a smirk before her gaze wondered and she started humming.

"Alright then," Pepper said stepping in, "how was Penny turned into a baby then."

"Oh, that's simple." Insania stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world and we just realized it. "Penn cast a spell on herself."

All of the others stared at each other in shock. "Why would she do that?" Bruce asked but Insania just shrugged.

Just as it seemed like someone was going to throw something at the girl the elevator slid open and three people walked out, only for them to freeze in shock at the sight that met their eyes.

"Shoot." Tony muttered, now they had more explaining and another problem to deal with.

Why on earth would she turn herself into a baby?

* * *

**If you guys haven't noticed, we are gonna go into a peaceful time frame for a bit, Avengers bonding, pranks, and other surprises are coming up, but mostly they are just a bit of fun before part one ends.**

**Hope you all enjoyed it. I'm going to sleep.**

**Cp**


	41. Screwed(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing, or else Iron Man 3 would have ended differently.**

**THIS CHAPTER IS DEDICATED TO Jaide Wolf, HP-DG-SB-HA-RR-KB-NT-TD-LL-AJ, Twilight Unicorn, and theoncomingwind, FOR CARING ENOUGH TO CHECK UP ON ME WHEN I DIDN'T UPDATE! THANKS!**

* * *

Third POV

Thor was the first one to snap out of his shock as he entered the room. "Why is Lady Stark a babe?"

His statement caused everyone to unfreeze. Tony and Bruce shared a worried look while Fury's eye narrowed.

"What is going on here!" he exclaimed with a glare.

"That's what we are trying to find out." Rogers said trying to keep the situation calm.

"….Insania, what did you do?" Coulson sighed, being the only newcomer who had any experience with the girl.

Insania shrugged and replied, "I did nothing."

"I find that hard to believe." Romanoff muttered, she had only been around the girl a few hours but she had already annoyed her beyond extremes.

"Sorry to disappoint." Insania drawled before flopping down upside down on the couch.

"She claims that Penny did this to herself." Banner added on and Tony glared at him mildly.

"Hey!" he said raising his hands, "Just repeating what she said."

Everyone sighed and Tony sat down with Penny in his lap.

"So, your back Thor?" Bruce asked, hoping to get questions away from the baby.

"Indeed." Thor nodded with a smile, "Otherworldly travel is once again possible, the bridge has been restored by the power of the Tesseract."

"Good to hear." Bruce stated before Fury glared at him.

"Okay, I want to know why and how, a sixteen year old girl is now a two year old child!" Fury exclaimed as everyone slowly found a seat in the living room.

"I would like to know what sparked this." Coulson agreed, he wanted to know the reason, the how was obvious if you know Pen….she tended to do the impossible. All of the Starks did.

Tony shrugged and everyone turned towards Insania, she sighed and said, "Well, I can't really know what I don't know but I do know that she told me that she wanted to annoy the hell out of a few specific people."

"Huh?" a few people said as they tried to work it out.

Bruce and Tony were the first to work it out, and Coulson was the second closely followed by Thor, they were used to Insania….sorta. Thor was just used to the play on words; he grew up with Loki after all.

"So she did this just to annoy us?" Pepper asked the young Immortal curiously.

Insania shrugged and replied while sliding off of the couch. "Not all of you, just one of you. A specific someone in the some people."

Fury's eyebrow twitched and he growled, "Can't you just spit it out."

In an instant Insania was off of the couch and she was inches from Fury's face. Her dark blue and light green eyes hardened and seemed to glow as she stated in a soft but deadly whisper.

"You wish to know the reason for my Sister's actions while you pushed her, she was tired of you butting in and changing things around. Ler'e has been following rules for ages, and she doesn't have to now, so stop complaining before I toss your Soul into an active volcano!" Insania hissed and Fury took a step back in fear.

"Oh, and Ler'e's doing this bug a certain Russian Spy who put a bullet in her chest." Insania drawled with a glare and everyone glanced at Romanoff who shifted nervously.

"Aynia!"

Everyone froze and turned towards the baby Penny who was reaching towards Insania.

Insania giggled and after teleporting across the room with dark mist, scooped the baby up into her arms.

"Oh Ler're, you're so silly!" Insania smiled ticking the babe.

"No, you!" Baby Penny said pouting at her Sister.

"You are." Insania rebuked and the Mortals who weren't in the know looked at them in shock at the mood swings.

"You!" She pouted crossing her tiny arms over her tiny chest.

"You!" Insania stated before she started tickling her Sister.

Baby Penny laughed her head off, trying to wiggle her way out of her Sister's arms.

When it was apparent that Penny wasn't escaping she vanished in a tiny cloud of mist and reappeared in Bruce's arm.

Bruce looked at her in surprise before chuckling and saying, "Of course you still have your powers…and I'm sure that you still have your mind as well."

Penny simply looked up at Bruce with her large grin eyes and Bruce realized that they were screwed, she was just too cute.

"Wait….so we have my adorable daughter, with all of her powers, and her mind who will be running around as an infant for who knows how long?" Tony stated realizing how insane this was gonna get.

"Yup!" Insania exclaimed as she started spinning.

"Uh oh." Rogers groaned as he too realized Pen's plan. She was two, adorable, with her mind, and powers…she could do anything.

"Penny! Turn back now or you're grounded, I know you don't like Romanoff, but this is not how you deal with it." Pepper stated trying to be the responsible one.

Penny just glared at her, how can a two year old glare, and shook her head stubbornly.

"Well, at least we know she understands us." Barton stated and caused almost everyone to glare at him.

"What are we supposed to do with a baby?!" Rogers exclaimed and Tony, Pepper, Coulson, Bruce and Thor all glared at him.

"She's still my daughter, and she still lives here!" Tony snapped while the others nodded.

"We shall care for her until she decides to retake her age." Thor stated as he settled down in a chair next to the couch Pepper and Tony were on.

Penny giggled and with another burst of silver mist, appeared in Thor's arms.

Coulson smiled as Pen started playing with Thor's hair. "I think she appreciated that statement."

"Yeah," Tony and Bruce agreed while Insania just smiled knowingly.

"We'll have to baby poof the Tower Tony." Pepper stated looking between the father and his new mini daughter.

"Why? She still knows everything Teenage-Pen did…." Tony tried to say but Pepper cut her off.

"Yeah, perhaps that is true but if Penny wants to be baby, she's gonna get treated like one." Pepper stated and Penny turned and glared at her with a pout.

"But…" Tony tried again but Pepper just cut him off.

"No buts Tony." She stated and he sighed before nodding.

"Where do you think you're going?!" Bruce exclaimed causing everyone to turn and they saw Romanoff trying to sneak out of the room.

"You're not going anywhere." Tony stated as he stood up, "If Penny did this to herself because of you then _you _are going to have to deal with it."

Coulson suddenly got an evil grin on his face and he said, "Well then, since it because of your issues with Penny that created this mess, you should deal with it."

Tony noticed the agent's expression and got a similar one, "Agreed."

"SO then, you are officially Penny Stark's babysitter until she's back to her correct age." Coulson stated with a smirk.

"What?!" Romanoff exclaimed her eyes widening.

"Oh yes, I think that it's a wonderful way for you two to get over whatever has been bothering you." Coulson drawled while Fury, Rogers, and Barton looked at him in disbelief.

"_Shooting her."_ Barton stated pretending to cough causing them to laugh.

Rogers looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding, "I think that this could be a good thing."

Tony looked at him in light surprise before smiling, "Good to have you aboard."

Tony then turned his pleading look onto Pepper and after a tense moment of silence she rolled her eyes with a sigh, "Alright, I'll go along with this."

Tony cheered causing them to laugh again.

Everyone smiling at baby Penny when she clapped and smirked at Romanoff who paled….she had a feeling that Penny wasn't going to make this easy for her.

"Who knew that Coulson had a dark side." Barton stated, no one noticing that Fury had stalked out of the room.

"Oh, we did." Tony smirked causing Coulson to groan and Romanoff, Rogers, and Barton to look at him in surprise.

"Phil's a pranking mastermind." He stated as Coulson buried his head in his hands.

"Stark! I have a reputation to uphold!" Phil glared lightly at Tony. He jumped in surprise as Penny suddenly appeared in his arms and patted him on the head…well, it was more like the ear because she couldn't reach his head, but you got the picture.

This caused everyone to laugh more, and Insania smirked. Now she saw what her Sister was trying to do…and it was brilliant.

Sadly, everyone had forgotten one little thing.

Hel ran out of the shadows, looking a bit frantic. "Where's Pen? Please tell me nothing's wrong, 'cause Boss is on a rampage and in a foul mood…"

Everyone froze at the news but before they could do anything a pissed off Mortem stalked out of the shadows.

"If something happened to…." He froze as he saw Baby Penny in Coulson's arms looking sheepishly at him.

His face hardened and he stated coldly, "Why is my girlfriend a baby?"

Everyone shared a look and swallowed; now they were screwed.

* * *

**Sorry for this chapter being so late, it would have been up on Friday but I was too tired. I didn't post last night because I was at a friend's having a major movie night. I'm posting three today to make it up.**

**Heheh, yup, Pen's a baby and changed herself! Heheh, this is going to be so fun!**

**Thanks to all of you, sorry if I worried any of you ^.- **

**Cp**


	42. Wrapped Around Her Finger(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**Can I steal the minds of those who own the things I do not? No? Aw….**

* * *

Third POV

"Well?" Mortem asked glaring at the Mortals. However before they could do more than glance uneasily at him Penny reacted and possibly saved them all.

"Or'tem!" She exclaimed and with a flash, was in her Bonded's arms.

He froze as he held the infant form of his Bonded. His eyes connected to Penny's and after a moment he sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Why am I not surprised?" He asked before Penny giggled and wrapped her tiny arms around his neck.

"Wait….but that's not fair!" Mortem exclaimed as baby Penny stuck her tongue out at him.

Mortem pouted and Penny giggled as everyone else looked at them in confusion.

"What on earth?" Rogers asked completely confused.

"You better get used to it Steve." Bruce stated smiling at the Immortal duo. "This is basically normality."

Steve paled at that declaration and banged his head against the wall.

Penny apparently said something else to Mortem because his eyes narrowed and he spun around to glare at Romanoff.

"Ah….now I understand." He stated with a smirk, and Romanoff paled.

"Mortem?" Tony asked basically his son-in-law.

Mortem barely spared Tony a glance before he asked Romanoff coldly, "Have you enjoyed your nightly visions?"

"That was you!" Romanoff hissed her eyes narrowing in rage.

"Well, I can't claim all responsibility." Mortem drawled with an evil smirk, "I called in a favor…fears are my Brother's specialty."

Even Penny shivered at his words, and Thor's expression darkened. He was not fond of that immortal.

Romanoff didn't reply but Rogers did.

"You've been causing Agent Romanoff problems!" He demanded and Bruce twitched reaching towards his arrows.

Mortem raised an eyebrow at the two males before saying in a monotone, "She hurt Penny, and _I _have not caused her any harm."

Penny hit him as hard as she could, which isn't much, but enough for Mortem to look down at her in shock.

After another silent conversation between the two Mortem sighed and pouted, "Fine."

"what?" Pepper asked Tony, hoping that he had some clue as to what they were talking about.

"No clue." Tony admitted.

"Aye Ceam!" Penny demanded glaring at Mortem.

He looked at the child in shock before saying, "Now?"

"Now!" she demanded and Mortem sighed before vanishing into a shadow.

"…are they gonna be okay?" Barton asked, not trusting the Immortal.

Tony rolled his eyes but before he could reply Hel said, "Oh, don't worry about those two. Boss would never let anything happen to her. Besides, do you seriously think that Tony would let her go off with him if he didn't trust him?"

Tony glared playfully at Hel but didn't comment, they all knew it was true so what the point in denying it.

"Not to mention that she has Mortem wrapped around her little finger." Insania giggled causing all of the males to groan.

Although Tony wouldn't admit it, Penny already had him wrapped around her finger, as well as most of the others….

And if they weren't yet, they would be soon.

* * *

Tony's POV

I sighed as I rubbed my temples; I had to admit that I didn't think that taking care of a baby Penny would be this hard.

But I should have.

Penny was determined to create as much mayhem as possible in the shortest amount of time, I was sure of it.

Fury now avoided the tower like it was hell on earth, for every time he stepped through the door, something changed and something shifted.

It was hilarious, and it causes us to laugh for hours on end, but that was just the beginning.

Like we had agreed, Romanoff was Pen's baby sitter, and while I would watch her, most of us tended to be 'busy' and the babe was handed us off to her.

Romanoff spent most of her time running around like headless chicken trying to find Pen, who had 'escaped' to cause some kind of mischief.

The first day that she had been a baby, she had turned everyone pink, made Jarvis sound like a girl, gave Pepper a clown make over, and kept teleporting all of the tower playing 'hide and seek' with Romanoff.

The last one we didn't mind all that much.

The second way went in the similar way Penny used her small size and enormous powers to prank everyone, made us all chase her around, and then proceeded to get Romanoff in trouble when Pen was found.

Pepper had been furious when she found Penny on the edge of the balcony, on the other side of the rail, trying to balance.

Now while we all knew that Pen could take care of herself, as a child or otherwise, there was just something that set everyone off when we saw her in a dangerous situation.

Perhaps it was just parental instincts.

However, it was after Penny had been a baby for a few days that things really started to get out of hand.

It was in the middle afternoon, I was in the lab enjoying the peacefulness. Bruce and Romanoff were watching Pen, and I had this idea that I wanted to get done.

"TONY!" Bruce ran in screaming and I wanted to bang my head on the wall. This was starting to really irritate me. Every time I tried to work in the lab, something went wrong and I had to stop what I was going. I wasn't going to get anything done at this rate.

"Mute" I grumbled and Jarvis killed the ACDC song that was on.

"What now?" I asked trying to fight back a headache. Was Penny trying to drive us all insane or was this all part of some big plan? At the moment, I didn't care.

"…Can't….find….Penny…." Bruce heaved, his breath labored. I put down what I was doing and spun towards him, getting to my feet.

"What do you mean." I practically growled.

"I…went to the…kitchen….Pen was….hungry….left her with….Romanoff….came back….she was gone…Romanoff freaking out….searched everywhere!" I patted Bruce on the back, it wasn't his fault.

But this was the perfect opportunity to yell at Romanoff. Most of the Avengers were still unhappy with Romanoff shooting Pen, even if they hadn't been in the beginning. They had all grown fond of my daughter in the past weeks, and we all loved the chance to make her life hell. For the moment.

"Where is she?" I growled and I saw Bruce's eyes flash green.

Before Bruce could answer Romanoff ran into the lab, panting, and looking frantic and fearful.

"I can't find her! I've looked everywhere! She's not in the Tower, I swear!" Romanoff stated trying to keep me calm.

"How did you lose her this time?" I stated coldly as the other Avengers along with Coulson walked into the room.

"I didn't do a thing!" She exclaimed, at our disbelieving looks she added, "I swear, I turned my head for one second to see if Bruce was back yet, and when I looked back the little brat was gone!"

Within an instant I was in her face and I saw Bruce trying to control himself.

My gaze hardened and it was like my body was on fire, my anger was so intense.

"Don't." I growled softly and Romanoff's eyes widened, "Call my daughter a brat."

She nodded fearfully and I took a step back and turned around. The others were glaring at her but I was now dedicated to ignoring her completely.

"Jarvis…" I started but like usual the AI was ahead of me.

"Sir, Miss Penny's energy signature is not anywhere in the Tower. Her disappearance does coincide with Agent Romanoff's story." Jarvis reported and I groaned.

"Did she have her tracker on?" I asked, momentarily forgetting about the others in the lab.

"You put a tracking device on your daughter?" Barton stated in surprise.

I turned to him and have him the 'you're an idiot' look. "I have several bracelets for her that has tracking chips in them. She is knowledgeable about all of them and doesn't protest about them most of the time.

"However, if she doesn't want to be found then the tracker will either be destroyed or turned off." I stated as Jarvis hummed in agreement.

"Jarvis?" I asked, turning my attention back towards the AI.

"The locater is active, however the signal scrambled slightly. I should have her location in a moment." Jarvis reported as a large holographic map of the east coast appeared.

"Calibrating." Jarvis stated as the map zoomed in on New York State.

"You guys think of everything." Rogers muttered to himself as the map continued to zoom.

"Of course." I stated rolling my eyes. I almost never do anything half way; if it interested or benefitted me or my family that is.

"Sir, I have located Miss Penny. It seems that she took a trip to Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters." Jarvis reported and the few Avengers who knew what that were frozen.

"Why would she go there?" Coulson asked himself in thought.

Bruce and I shared a look, Penny had told us of her history with the school; and how at one point, it had been partly her school.

I mostly tried not to think about the whole past lives thing…I got a headache every time I did.

But this…for some reason I didn't think that this was a social visit. Especially since she was an infant right now.

"Right, well, then that's where we are going." Rogers declared and the rest of us looked at him in shock. "She could be in trouble."

It was then that I smirked; it looked like Pen had worked her magic on Rogers as well. Even if that man was annoying, he did seem to try and keep Pen in mind when dealing with me.

"Are you sure that that's a good idea?" Barton asked, knowing about the school.

"Aye, I am sure that Lady Stark can look after herself." Thor nodded, knowing just how powerful my daughter is.

"She's just a baby!" Romanoff protested.

"Perhaps physically." Coulson stated trying to keep the peace, "But not mentally."

"So…are we going?" Bruce asked now back in control.

Just then, the blinking red dot that was Pen's tracker faded.

A bad feeling settled in my gut and I said,

"Yes, we are."

* * *

**SORRY for the lack of updates the last few days…I've been watching anime with my friend and besides, it's fall break. I'm allowed some slack. ^.^**

**This is Saturday's chapter, I'll try and get the rest that I've missed up today but I can't promise anything!**

**Cp**


	43. My Forte(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**Can I possess Marvel and make them put Pen in all of their movies? No? Aww…I don't own a thing.**

* * *

Pen's POV

I had to admit, being a baby was fun! I got to torment Romanoff, prank everyone, do whatever I wanted, and with one look Mortem couldn't tell me no! Well, okay, the last one was basically the same, but as a toddler, I could stay in Mortem's arms as long as I wanted and Daddy couldn't yell at me!

However, just because I was a baby didn't mean I still didn't have my Duties to take care of.

I wasn't planning on ditching Romanoff, though I didn't think twice about it.

I vanished in a swirl of silver mist, I could return to my real age if it was really necessary, but I had a feeling that it wouldn't be.

Or at least, I hope that it wouldn't be.

* * *

I giggled as I followed the young student through the impressive halls. I had been able to run around the school grounds, checking all of the defensives, for about ten minutes before a student noticed me and dragged me off to see Xavier.

I didn't know the kid, he hadn't been here when I taught, but that was years ago that it wasn't surprising. The school had a lot more students than it had when I was first around, and while I was no longer running the school, I was still proud of the way it had grown.

I wasn't sure what I was needed here for, but my Duties weren't always specific.

"You are very hyper." The older boy, who appeared to be about fifteen, stated looking at me in wonder.

"Yeah!" I stated, my childish voice causing the boy to smile.

I had to admit, even though I was Bonded to Mortem, this kid was cute.

"Well, let's find out how you got here." The boy said and I giggled, I knew how I got here, I was no babe.

The boy nocked on Charles' door and I heard the professor call out, "Enter."

The door opened and I ran into the room spinning, the purple dress I was wearing twirling around my knees.

"Hello there." Charles said as I jumped into his lap. "Where did you come from little one?"

I giggled, wondering how long it would take for Charles to recognize me. I knew from my past life that Charles hated looking into the minds of very young children, he always worries that his mental presence will harm the young brain before it is developed enough to handle the stress.

In short terms, I doubted he dared to look into my mind, so this was gonna be fun!

"She was found walking along the border of the property, but it took us a bit of time to get her to come with me. She is quite fast." The boy said, I still didn't know his name, but I didn't care all that much.

"A mutant?" Charles asked gazing down on me with his bright eyes. Now that I thought about it, he didn't remind me of Dumbledore, though I tried not to think about it for it was too painful.

"Nope!" I giggled, smirking at the look of shock on Charles face.

Well, technically my original Sparks were from the X-gene but there was no need for any of them to …eh, it wouldn't do any damage.

" 'ell, no 'elly." I said my "W"s and "R"s practically nonexistent. I paused for a moment, that didn't really make sense… "So'ta."

Charles raised an eyebrow at my intelligence before his eyes narrowed. I knew he was connecting the dots in his mind and I grinned at him cheekily and waved.

"Hi Cha'les!" I exclaimed before giggling again. There was just something about being two that made me giggle a lot.

His eyes widened but before he said anything he turned to the boy and said, "How about you go back to class."

The kids new a dismissal when he saw one, and was swift to leave.

"Is that you?" Charles asked and I giggled a but before nodding.

"Yup!" I exclaimed showing Charles the tiny sparks that danced between my fingertips. The hardest part about turning myself back to the age of two, was shrinking down the Arc without destabilizing it. I had done it of course, but it wasn't easy. It was also why I was stuck in this form until my spell ran its course.

It would be very dangerous to use magic too long on my Arc, it would have negative effects and possibly overload it; and since it's in my chest…yeah it wouldn't be pretty.

"I know that you are powerful, but to revert yourself back to this age…." Charles paused at the look in my eye and sighed, "Your pranking someone, aren't you."

I nodded and he sighed again, "you haven't change much, have you?" he asked and I laughed.

"D'pend's on wha' you t'ink is 'ange." I stated, and even though my words were butchered, Charles seemed to get it.

"Oh, it's you alright." He stated as I patted his arm.

"I was never able to ask, what should I call you now? You are no longer Ben, I assume?" Charles asked and I giggled again.

I really couldn't help the giggling; I think it was a baby thing.

"Penny!" I exclaimed, reaching out my hand.

With an amused look Charles took my tiny hand in his own and shook it.

"Penny, do I get the privilege of a last name?" he asked with a smile. I thought for a moment.

Daddy and everyone would realize soon that I wasn't anywhere in the Tower, and since I didn't care all that much I hadn't turned off my locater.

Conclusion, Daddy and everyone would be here soon enough, and I wanted to surprise my old friend.

I gave him a grin that promised mischief and said, "Soon Cha'les, soon."

My "soon" sounded weird, but then almost all of my words did in one way or another.

Xavier rolled his eyes but gave me a grin, "Things are never boring around you, are they?"

"Nope!" I exclaimed, managing to pop the "P", I was proud of that.

Before Charles could answer, the door burst open and Wolverine, Storm, and Cyclops ran in.

"Sir!" They all froze at the sight of me in his lap I giggled again.

"Yes?" Charles prompted trying to see what the problem is.

"Magnito and some of his men are at the gates, don't know why they are there…but personally, I believe it has something to do with the events in New York." Storm reported and Wolverine growled.

Charles sighed and I knew that he didn't want to deal with Erik.

Erik…how far he had fallen, we had all been friends back in the day.

"Move all the students except the trainees into the catacombs beneath the school." He glanced down at me and I glared at him so he continued, "Everyone else on high alert. Let's see what he has to say."

They all looked to me, but it only took one glare from me and a stern look from Charles to get them moving.

"Where did that kid come from Professor?" Wolverine asked and I smirked as well I could.

" 'oo don't 'member me?" I asked and as I called on my sparks Wolverine's and Storm's eyes widened.

"You shrunk." Wolverine grunted and I nodded.

"How?" Storm asked while Cyclops looked confused.

I smirked but Charles stepped in and said, "I don't think that this is a concern as of this moment."

I nodded and so did the others, slowly though.

"Sir, shouldn't she be sent down with the younger students?" Cyclops asked as they walked and we rolled down the hallway.

I rolled my eyes and attempted to drawl, "You can t'y an' send me 'own t'ewe but it wo't wo'k."

Cyclops looked at me in shock; I was speaking above the level of an average two year old. He was surprised.

"Professor?" he asked and Xavier waved him off.

"No worries, she won't be in any danger." Charles reassured him, but gave me a swift look that told me I shouldn't get in trouble.

Just then, as we passed a large group of students that teachers were leading towards the catacombs, the mansion shook.

The kids all dropped to the floor, thinking that it was an attack. I sighed and Charles looked at me in question.

"Erik's hewer." I stated and Charles expression hardened.

"What was that?!" Wolverine exclaimed and I was the first one to respond.

"Shweild b'oke." I stated really starting to hate my young mouth and tongue.

"Shield?" Storm echoed, "What shield?"

Charles looked down at me and I nodded.

When I had been part of this world, I had created a shield that I powered to protect the school. It had died only a few months after I had. Since I was alive, I had decided to power it back up and now it was just a few steps down from my Spark Shield's.

Though it still had a few bugs.

"I assume that was you're doing?" Charles asked me as we exited the hall and entered the courtyard.

"Yup! It 'till has some bug's," I stated causing the others to stare at me in amazement and shock, "but wo'ked for a few min'its."

"You are not normal." Cyclops muttered, my advanced hearing picked his comment up and I decided to ignore it as I said,

"Yup!" with a giggle.

I stopped giggling as I saw the group of mutants being led by my old friend marching up our lawn.

I sighed and sadly flicked off the tracker on my tiny bracelet. Daddy would have to wait a moment.

We met half way between the gates and the door, and it wasn't just the five of us, every single X-man and trainee where standing beside us. Many were shooting me wondering looks, from both sides.

Charles and Erik both stepped forward and I sighed as I Erik looked at me in surprise.

"A child Charles?" he asked, his ridicules helmet on his head.

"No ordinary child Erik." Xavier replied calmly.

"Indeed?" he asked and I took that as my cue.

"He'o Erik." I was very careful to pronounce his name correctly. "R"s weren't my forte at the moment.

We stared at each other for a moment, before he finally recognized my green eyes.

"Impossible." He breathed as everyone looked on in confusion.

I smirked and tried not to giggle. Now, the impossible was my forte.

* * *

**DONE this was supposed to be Sunday's chap, and I'm trying really hard to catch up but oh well. At least I'm still updating.**

**I might be able to pull out one more chapter today, but no promises.**

**Cp**


	44. Hasn't Changed(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**Disney has the money, they own Marvel, and what they don't own, JK does. So why even question me, do I need to speak to Insania about annoying people?**

* * *

"I t'oght that I tau't 'oo that not'ing is im'oss'eble." I stated, hating the fact that my young tongue slipped up so much.

Erik just stared at me, and so did everyone else.

"For what reason are you here Erik? The last encounter between us that I recall was several months ago." Charles asked our old friend.

Logan snorted and I heard him mutter very quietly, "Enough talking, if he wanted to talk he should've used the phone."

I turned and glared at him, "Shush, t'e g'own ups aw'e ta'king."

His mouth dropped open in shock and it was his turn to get stared at in shock. Then they turned towards me when Erik started laughing.

"It is you; still have your bite, even if you have small teeth." Erik laughed causing many people to look at him in horror.

I smirked at him and let my aura flare just for a moment. Everyone took a step back, besides Charles who merely raised an eyebrow at me.

"My bite's a'ot mo'e t'en 'ust my teet'." I stated coldly and everyone nodded.

A small scan of emotions showed that most of the people around me were scared…

Huh, who knew a two year old could be scary? Cool!

I let my aura fade and Erik replied, slightly shaken, "I can see that."

"Why are you here?" Charles repeated getting back on topic.

Eric sighed and looked sadly at the people around us. "I did not come here to fight old friend…"

"Now why don't I believe you?" Logan growled, his claws sliding out.

"Charles, please control your mutt." Erik drawled and all sides tensed.

Ah, so this was why I was brought here.

If I wasn't here, then the sides would start fighting no matter what was said or intended, and it would escalate the war between the two sides. It would be the last straw so to say….the last small thing that tipped the scale.

"I am no one's lap dog!" Wolverine growled, he tried to lunge at them but Cyclops held him back.

"This is not the time!" Cyclops hissed into the older mutant's ear. Logan narrowed his eyes at him but said nothing.

"Stop!" I yelled, standing up on Charles' lap. Everyone turned towards me in shock and I glared at them all.

Deciding to abandon my physical speech for now, I said mentally to everyone, _**"Is now really the time for petty fights! You all are brothers, sisters, yes you have different views, and yes you have strong sibling rivalry, but it is in these times that family, no matter how distant, should stand together and support one another. **_

"You know why we've come?" One of Erik's men asked, I nodded slowly and say that they still couldn't wrap their minds around me.

"_**About what happened in New York, no?" **_I asked and most of the other side nodded.

"There were aliens!" someone in the back of the crowd yelled, and I couldn't tell which side it came from.

"_**Yes,"**_ I stated _**"There was. The world you all knew is changing. There is no longer just Mutants and Humans. Our world has met another, and now that that door has opened, there is no turning back.**_

"_**Now we have Aliens, people from Other Dimensions, Lab Accidents, myths and legends joining our world. Our world has evolved. Yes, you all were the first step, and you are the path that Humanity has chosen but we are no longer alone. **_

"_**Humans, if they have the X-gene or not, need to stand together and take on this world hand in hand. This won't come easy, it won't be simple, but I believe that if you **__**all**__** take the necessary actions then the future will be brighter.**_

"_**This is now so much bigger than your two sides and it is time that you realize that. It wasn't a Mutant that stopped the Aliens in New York. Although I don't doubt that you could've handled it…I asked Xavier's people not to.**_

"_**You need to see that the line in the sand is no longer necessary. Erik, old friend, you need to understand and let go of your anger for humanity. **_

"_**Yes, humans have a tendency to be idiotic and prejudice but they will have to come to terms with the new world soon enough. There will always be the odd people who hate our new world, and many will try and take it out on those who 'caused' it. **_

"_**But don't judge a whole race on the actions of a few; otherwise, you are no different than those you despise so much."**_

Hoping that part of my speech had gotten through to my old friend; I sighed and rubbed my eyes. Sure, I had all of my powers, but my physical body wasn't the best channel and I got tired quicker.

"What are you?" one of Xavier's Trainees asked the same time that Erik said,

"You got through my helmet."

I rolled my eyes; it took him that long to figure that out?

Deciding to respond to both statements at the same time I said, _**"Indeed I can, Erik. As for you, I am a mixture of many things….some people believe that I am a mixture of everything. But that is no concern to you."**_

"I can't leave you alone for a second, can I Pen?" we all turned towards the new voice and I giggled.

Daddy and the others were here. Apparently, they had shown up partway through my speech. I saw a SHIELD jet landed in Xavier's parking lot, and the others were walking up the driveway towards us.

Daddy and Thor had flown so they were already on the lawn.

I giggled as Daddy stepped out of the suit with a grin.

"Sorry to crash the party." He said as I wiggled my way out of Charles lap. "We're just here to pick someone up."

Logan's eyes narrowed and he growled taking a step forward, "This is privet property bub."

Tony shrugged, "I know, and I'm sorry…."

"Pardon our interruption, we were just worried." Thor said stepping in.

"Worried? Worried about what…." Storm wasn't able to finish her sentence as I ran forward giggling.

"Daddy!" I exclaimed and jumped into Dad's arms and wrapped my arms around his neck.

"Penny, what did I tell you about leaving without telling me?" Dad asked me and I looked down chewing on my lip.

"Not too…" I muttered but then I looked up with my large green eyes and said, "But I 'anted too he'p my fw'einds!"

I gave him a look that said, I needed to, and he sighed, putting the pieces together.

I turned back around to see both sides staring at us in shock.

Charles was the first one to snap out of the stupor and chuckled, "So I can assume that your last name is Stark?"

I giggled and nodded, while the others looked confused.

Keeping his arm around me Dad stepped forward at the same time Charles rolled forward.

"Professor Xavier, it's an honor to finally meet you." Daddy stated as he took Charles' hand.

"Likewise, Mr. Stark; may I say, you have a very special daughter there." Charles said giving me a smile.

"Oh," Dad commented with a grin, "I know."

"I also would like to thank you for your donations; they have helped this school a lot." Charles continued but Dad just shrugged him off.

"No big deal, though that was supposed to be anonymous. You really should be thanking Pen here, it was her idea." Dad stated giving me a fond smile that caused me to smile back.

"Indeed, thank you then, Penny." Charles said nodding to me.

"No Big!" I answered back, causing Thor to chuckle.

"Cha'les, meet Th'or g'od of t'under a'd lit'ing! Th'or, Pweff'essor Cha'les X'ver." I stated, trying to do introductions the best I could.

Charles and Thor seemed to get it, but everyone else was confused so Daddy had to translate for me.

"Professor this is Thor, God of Thunder and Lighting. Thor this is Professor Charles Xavier. This is his school." Comprehension dawned on everyone else's faces when Dad translated. It caused me to giggle again.

"I didn't know Stark has a daughter." One of the kids commented to other. Dad and I heard him and glowered at him.

The other Avengers had also arrived and they all got protective looks on their faces…besides Romanoff. She looked depressed.

"Penny's existence is not common knowledge." Dad stated giving the kid a stern look.

"And until such a time when Mr. and Miss Stark feel otherwise, it will be staying that way." Coulson said appearing at our side as Bruce stepped behind us.

"We shall not be the ones to reveal her." Charles promised, and to everyone's surprise Erik stepped up and said,

"None of us will." Now everyone who knew of Magnito's past gapped at him like a fish out of water.

"Thank you." Tony nodded with a smile. "She can take care of herself but still, I worry about her."

Charles nodded in understanding as did Erik. "Understandable."

"She's just a baby…" Cyclops muttered in confusion. I wasn't sure if it was that he was just slow or something else, but it was funny and annoying at the same time.

Romanoff snorted, causing everyone and I mean everyone to glare at her.

I stuck my tongue out at her, and Charles looked between the two of us and asks,

"That's who?"

I nodded and said, "Yup, she's a meanie."

"I am not." Romanoff protested but even Barton gave her a look that told her to shut up.

Tony gave her a cold stare and looked ready to punch her, "Shut up Romanoff."

"Got back to the jet Natasha. We don't need a fight here." Rogers said making his presence known.

Coulson nodded and Romanoff, seeing that it was an order, stalked back to the jet with fury in every step.

There was an awkward moment of silence before Dad was Dad and broke it.

"Oh, Pen's actually sixteen; she just turned herself into baby…" Dad said with a shrug.

"She seems to find it very amusing to make us freak out." Bruce said, speaking for the first time.

"And prank us." Rogers and Barton muttered under their breaths.

Erik and Charles shared a look before chuckling.

"Hasn't changed." They muttered together, and thankfully only those of Avengers in the know heard them.

I beamed at them. I just stopped a war!

Yeah baby power!

* * *

**That last part was so cute...okay almost all of it was cute!**

**The whole Romanoff bashing won't continue forever…just until Pen's back to her real age. That's the whole point of this so you know. ;)**

**This was supposed to be Monday's chapter, so here it is. I am hoping to be able to catch up today, since I got this one done so early, so if you get multiple chapters today that is why!**

**Thanks for reading!  
Cp**


	45. The Hard Way(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I don't know about you all, but I own nothing.**

* * *

All of the Avengers, and Coulson, got shown around the mansion. Charles had offered a tour to Erik, but he had refused saying that he had work to do. He and his men had returned home, part of me was sad that my old friend didn't stick around, but I knew that our meeting had been the first step between repairing things between the two sides.

The Avengers, especially Bruce and Rogers, were quite impressed with the school. The SHIELD agents knew about it of course, but they had never been inside. Dad and Charles got along very well, as did he and Jean.

As we were shown around the school Charles told us that we had an open end invitation; me, Daddy, Thor and Bruce especially.

I had a great time, the X-men and their students soon warmed up to us, especially Dad, who had experience with teens.

Charles had even offered Dad a teaching job, Dad had laughed and told him that if he ever needed a job, he knew where he would go.

I found that completely hilarious, but of course, I was physically two. So after only a few hours of watching the bonding between the two groups, I found myself fading off into sleep.

"Night, night, Daddy…" I muttered as my eyes closed, this wasn't a part of being young that I enjoyed.

I heard Dad chuckle and his voice whispered in my ear, "Sleep well Penny."

* * *

Third POV

"She's adorable, but damn she's heavy." Tony muttered as he shifted his stance trying not to wake his sleeping teenage-toddler daughter.

Thor chuckled and Tony glared at him. They really wanted to head back to the tower, but Charles had one last thing to show them.

A training exercise using the Hologram room that was created using the donations made by Tony and Penny. So of course all of the X-men wanted to show it off.

"Amazing." Tony breathed as the room came to life. Sure, his own holograms were much more advance but they never needed to be used in this way…it was amazing.

"Romanoff," Tony said, bring the woman's attention to him. She had been let in an hour before, after grudgingly apologizing to Coulson.

"What?" She asked softly, hoping that he was telling her to get lost; she didn't want to be here any longer than necessary.

"Take Pen back to the Tower, we won't be much longer…but she needs to sleep and my arms are tired." Tony stated giving her a look.

"Why should I?" Romanoff asked but one look from Rogers, Barton, and Coulson shut her up.

"Fine, whatever." She muttered before taking the small Immortal into her arms.

"I'm taking the jet." Romanoff called out over her shoulder as she spun on her heel to leave.

There was a moment of silence and Romanoff almost got to the elevator before Tony said, "Oh, and Natasha?"

Romanoff froze at the use of her first name. She glanced back in question and stiffened as Tony's icy look.

"If anything and I mean _anything_ happens to her, I will have your head." Tony threatened his voice a deadly monotone before he turned his attention back onto the demonstration.

Everyone else gave her a glare that conveyed the message, we agree, before they ignored her.

Romanoff gulped, but nodded silently.

Hardening her jaw he became determined to prove them wrong. She could take care of a baby, and she could be a ….tolerable…person.

And she was determined to prove it.

* * *

**(something new!)  
**Romanoff POV

I sighed to myself as I made my way through the silent halls of the Tower, mini Stark and I had just gotten back to the tower, and the tiny thing was still sleeping.

I was actually glad that Stark's daughter was still asleep, who knew what kind of mayhem the kid would cause if she woke up.

Not to mention the fact that if anything did happen, no matter how small, _she_ would be the one who was blamed.

I really wanted to hit something, but I couldn't because I had a kid in my arms. I seriously couldn't see what the big problem was.

Okay, I shot and seriously injured (I couldn't have killed her otherwise I wouldn't be holding her) Starks daughter who was a friend to a lot of people…but I didn't know.

What was I supposed to do? She had been seen running away from the commotion in Loki's cell and had been hiding on the Helicarrier…what was I supposed to think?

It also wasn't my fault that my gun fired after Coulson ordered us to…oh what was I kidding, I ignored him. I shouldn't have.

If I had just listened to him I wouldn't be in this huge mess. Man, I was an idiot.

Suddenly, it was like a wall around my brain and heart cracked, and I wanted to apologize…I really wanted to say "I'm sorry"….

What the hell was wrong with me?

I didn't get time to ponder that fact, as all of the sudden, the lights failed, and the whole Tower went dark.

"Jarvis!" I called out, it was second nature now. Everyone in the Tower relied on him, and it was actually concerning for his voice not to respond.

Muttering a few choice words under my breath in Russian I stalked carefully down the hall. I shifted my hold on Penny so that I could pull my gun out…something was wrong, my instincts were screaming at me…

I barely dropped to the ground in time. Wrapping my body around the smaller one, I rolled and sprung back up onto my feet, barely missing the energy beam that would've hit me otherwise.

Muttering in Russian again I quickly scanned the area for any targets. We were on my floor, and only very specific people could access these rooms without my permission…and one of them were sleeping in my arms.

Not bothering to glance down, but wanting to glare all the same, I muttered, "Would be a good time for you to wake up."

The babe didn't move and I suppressed a scowl. This wasn't the time.

I slipped into my emotionless persona, I was Black Widow…and I was going to remind whoever the idiots who were sneaking around my home of that little fact.

Not noticing anything else, I carefully stalked down the hall. Not for the first time, I was thankful that I always wore my suit…it had been drilled into my head for so long it was impossible for me not to.

First thing to do was getting the power back online, and then taking out…

My eyes winded a small fraction as I dropped to the ground in another roll, Penny tucked against my chest in protection, as I dodged another three rays of energy.

Okay, change in plans. First, disable all threats in Tower, then restore power to the systems and contact the rest of the team…

"Coulson." I hissed hitting the com in my ear, and stalking down the dark hall. "Barton?!"

There was no response, not even static; it was like the com wasn't there at all.

"Come one." I muttered to myself. I flattened against the wall as the shadow of a man passed by. It looked like someone had light.., most likely headlamps or flashlights. This was why the Tower needed more windows... it was too dark. But we were in the center, there wasn't any.

"You could really wake up now." I hissed to the child in my arms as I turned a corner.

But the child slept on, as if I didn't exist.

Trying to ignore my irritation with the Stark heir, I attempted it focus. There was an unknown number of hostiles in the Tower, the power was disabled, and I was at a disadvantage because of the child.

For a moment I contemplated leaving her in a locked room until I sorted this out, but decided against it.

Thor, Bruce, and not to mention Tony would skin me alive if I did that….the others would also have a plan for me if I failed.

I froze as I turned another corner and came face to face with twelve masked guys, carrying weapons,

"Hand over the kid." The leader of the little band, obviously he stood at the front and everyone kept looking at him.

"Why?" I asked, wondering who wanted Penny, no one besides SHIELD and the X-men knew about her….well the Asgardians did but that was the least possible leak out of them all.

The man didn't answer but just conitneud to stare at me. Moving as stubtly as possible, I shifted my position and tighted my hold on the trigger.

A slightest movement, that was all I needed…and this would turn into a blood bath.

I was sure that Tony wouldn't appreciate the new possible paintjob, but oh well.

Stark was annoying, but you didn't get in his way.

Or his daughter's…I learned that the hard way.

* * *

**Yes, technically, over here it is passed midnight but I had a crappy day, am tired, and want to sleep.**

**Just be glad I updated.**

**Cp**


	46. Click(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I own nothing.**

* * *

(still Romanoff's POV)

My lips were pressed together, every muscle in my body ready at a moment's notice.

We stared each other down, and I knew that thing would be easier if I didn't have the sleeping child in my arms…but I did. They wanted her, and they weren't getting her.

No one moved, each of us waiting for the other to move, twitch, to show their hand.

These men were no novice, they were professionals, and knew what they were doing. That made this all the more dangerous.

It would happen any second now, someone would move, barely almost not at all, but it would be enough of a tell for the whole room to explode.

And I was determined to be on the top when that happened.

We stared each other down, even though all of the men wore masks and black armor, I knew that they were doing the same.

I didn't get my reputation…which isn't the 'best' I admit… without some serious situations and experience backing it up.

Coulson had told me that Fury once called me the 'deadliest thing SHIELD had' and considering the amount of Intel, weapons, and powering being working for them…that was saying a lot.

Then it happened.

The main guys eyes barely twitched, and his fingers moves less then an inch, but I knew…and it began.

Several shots rang through the air and within moments half of the dozen armed men were down. However, it had purely been surprise that had worked in my favor, and now…I was at the disadvantage.

I twirled and sidestepped, s=constantly moving, trying to keep Pen out of the line of fire as often as possible.

I locked at the muscles in my left arm, like how I would if it was broke, and a calm determination came over me.

I was going to do this.

Their first mistake was being in the Tower in the first place.

Their second was that they thought that I would hand over the kid.

Their third was thinking that I wasn't a large threat because of their child.

My movements were hindered, and I was forced to use more force than usual. Not having the ability to maneuver as I usually did. It was quite hard to flip when you are carrying a two year old.

However that didn't mean that I wasn't fighting, or that I was any less deadly if I did say so myself.

I wasn't sure if it was Pen's subconscious or if Tony had more tricks than I thought, but a thin silver shield appeared in front of me the moment the men started returning fire.

It took me a micro-second to contemplate the chance of the shield also protecting from close-quarters combat as well as projectile weapons.

It seems long, I suppose, but in reality it all took a blink of an eye.

I charged at them, my gun firing and my mind blank.

Dodge a fist, twist right, left knee to stomach, blow to temple. Target eliminated.

Duck.

Turn, click, shoot, lean back, elbow lunge to chest, dodge. Target eliminated.

Butt of gun to the back of the head, elbow to nose, shoe heel to knee cap, taser. Target eliminated.

Step back, elbow jab release smoke bomb, jump, kick to back of head, click, shoot. Target eliminated.

New Target, threat: armed, knife.

Shield Protection, unknown.

Dodge, duck, kick, abandon empty gun.

Shield Protection determined, projectile weapons only.

Arm lock, double blow to stomach, leg choke hold, tase. Target neutralized.

Step back, check child, watch listen.

Their Fourth and Final mistake: the leader came at me with a knife.

I dodged, bending backwards and low. But it was not enough. The smoke bomb was still clearing, and his attack had been hidden.

The long silver blade cut through the air, and as if in slow motion, it slid past my chest and almost missed Penny.

Almost.

The tip of the blade barely scratched her cheek, it barely grazed it.

But it was enough.

A thin stream of blood flowed down her cheek as her bright green eyes snapped open.

Something was wrong, I knew it instantly.

Her eyes glowed and she screamed. It was no cry, it was no yell, it was an inhumanly screech that seemed to vibrate through your very being.

The shadows in the dark hall lengthened and the temperature dropped. I looked down at the child in my arm, but she paid me no mind. Her attention was on the attacker.

She didn't move, she didn't blink…she just continued to scream.

Small arcs of lightning jumped from the floor to the wall, and I watched in horrified wonder as a _scream_ changed the whole game.

The shadows and electricity grew, and the room took on a warped look. I saw the man's eyes widen in fear. He tried to escape, he tried to flee, but he was frozen. He couldn't move.

It took an instant, it was less then a second, but it was a scene I would ever forget.

The shadows jumped out and wrapped around the man, as the bolts flew thorugh the air and spun around him.

His eyes caught mine, and for a moment I was able to see the pure horror…

Then he will literally pulled _into_ the floor, and he was gone.

Everything returned to normal, the smoke cleared, the shadows crawled back to their true shape, and the lightning vanished.

But so did the bodies.

It was like nothing had happened at all.

Penny's glowing eyes met mine and I instantly knew what I had identified as wrong before.

Her eyes were glowing; they were still just as bright as they always had been…

But they were missing something. They were missing the intelligence, the knowledge, the spirit they usually held.

They were basically empty…

It was like her mind was still sleeping. Her body was the only part of her awake.

"Penny?" I asked, her glowing eyed stare unnerving me. There was something…odd…about this child that had always set my instincts on end.

I suppose it was _that_ that had always caused me so much trouble with the girl.

Some part of me just didn't believe she was human…or mutant…and I couldn't shake it.

The child didn't respond, but her eyes flickered between me and down the hallways.

She didn't speak, but her tense body language told me what was wrong.

"More here?" I asked and the slight shift in her eyes told me all I needed to know.

We were not yet alone.

"Hold onto my back, I'll be able to fight better." I said, and after _something_ flickered in Penny's eyes, I maneuvered the child onto my back.

I would have to watch for attacks from behind, but now at least I had both hands to fight with.

Pen's grip on me was tight, and I knew she wasn't going to fall.

Not that I was _too_ worried. Stark was right…she could take care of herself.

I practically slid down the hall and into another, they had to be close, I could hear their footsteps.

No sooner had I turned the corner, and then bullets bounced off the shield. I glared as the bullets made holes in the walls.

Stark was going to blame me!

"Don't you know it is rude to barge into someone's home?" I drawled before pulling my own firearms out of their straps on my thighs. I had more than one after all.

There were only four of them.

Dodge, click, shoot, step.

Slide, click, shoot, lean, kick.

Kick, click, shoot, punch.

Dodge, slide, click, shoot, continue on.

With the threat eliminated I continued down the hall. Ignoring the shadows that seemed to swallow them up into the floor, it was time to embrace the weirdness.

I felt a pair of eyes on me, and turning my head my eyes connected with Pen's empty ones.

"You're not mentally there….are you?"

I didn't get a response, but I wasn't expecting one.

I didn't know what was wrong. I just hoped that whatever it was would be fixed by the time the others got home.

They would kill me if anything was wrong with Penny.

* * *

**You all should be thanking me on your knees for getting this out tonight…**

**I am so freaking tired; I contemplated just ditching you guys.**

**So thanks me.**

**I'm going to bed.**

**Cp**


	47. Mental War(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**I don't own anything! Leave me be! Or I'll make you sick with my wonderful powers of ME!**

**Hehe, **

**DON'T KILL ME, I know I've been gone a while, but I got in a bad mood, then sick, then had to catch up on school (last night) so yeah. Let's just say that Fall Break wasn't a break for me. (and NO, watching almost 2 whole seasons nonstop of Merlin on Netflix while I was sick had **_**nothing**_** to do with me not updating)**

* * *

(still Romanoff's POV)

I had searched the whole Tower, three times, but I found no other intruders.

I was still tense, but no longer worried about an attack. No, I was worried because something had dawned on me…it had struck me like lightning, and I couldn't believe I had ignored it.

Because of my upbringing and profession I have to lock up a part of my heart, if not all of it. I had closed off a part of me years ago. I had tried to turn off my heart, but when I couldn't, not completely I had settled on locking up as tight as I could. I didn't want to have emotions, feelings…they could 'compromise' me in my line of work.

But since Penny had entered my life… those feelings and instincts had been trying to break free from the bounds I had placed on them; and I hadn't even realized it. That was why I had been having such a hard time around the girl, not only did I actually feel _guilty_ about shooting the child, but I was also extremely protective of her…the small part of me that I still allowed to feel.

I had been stuck in the middle of a mental and emotional war between two parts of myself without even realizing it. Penny had wormed her way into my heart, and the hardened part of myself that had developed over the years, was furious about it. I wasn't supposed to feel anything.

I was an assassin, a spy, in my line of work you can't afford to feel anything.

Or at least, that is what one part of me was saying.

The other part wanted me to realize that the small child in my arms, who in reality was a teenager with great power, was now a part of my life, and I wasn't going to be able to just ignore her.

I sighed, why I had to realize this _now_ I had no clue. It didn't help me any, I still had a dark tower, a strange acting teenage-baby and a suspiciously empty Tower to deal with…

I didn't need some mental war on top of it, but when did fate ever like me?

Penny was still in my arms, yet she wasn't back to her cheerful, smart and pranking self yet…she was still…blank.

It was extremely strange, slightly disturbing…and if I was truthful with myself, worrying.

Part of my brain was trying to convince me that it was only Tony and the other's wrath that I was worried about…

But that wasn't true.

I was actually worried about the red haired girl in my arms.

And _that_ was what worried me.

I didn't think that the knife that had cut Penny's cheek had been laced with anything…but I couldn't be sure. The thin cut, barely more than a paper cut really, didn't look swollen, it didn't have any coloration or dryness that usually came with poison…but who knew what could have been on the knife?

After I had searched the Avenger's personal floors, labs, and then every part of the Tower, I made my way down to the sublevels where the Arc Reactor was.

The Tower was still dark, although emergency lights were on so I supposed Stark did actually think ahead, as it seemed he had emergency backup generators.

Though knowing the Stark family, that was probably more Pepper or even Penny…though it could have been Tony who thought of it.

At first I had panicked when the Arc went off-line, I knew just how disastrous an overloading Arc could be…I had seen the footage from the year before. It had been devastating then…with a whole Tower sitting on top of it…it would be worse. Much, much, worse.

I couldn't help but feel tense in the awkward silence between Penny and I as I made my way down the many flights of stairs to the sublevel that housed the Arc Reactor.

I knew that the attack had been planned; the attack, blackout, and strange emptiness of the Tower only confirmed that.

Someone was after Penny, and I needed to find out who…before Tony did. Or Tony would have my head.

All attempts to contact SHIELD had failed, my com was silent and all other communications were simply getting static. Even the com Stark had given me for an emergency wasn't working…and that was supposed to work no matter what. Though I kept the panic button on just in case the signal got through…I would have to deal with Stark's panicking anyway, I would be happier if the _team_ just got here. Not to mention they would kill me if I didn't take an attack on Penny seriously.

I sighed as I looked down at Pen who was still just staring ahead blankly. Now I could see why everyone went crazy when she was in trouble, and I knew that I was also wrapped around her finger…

Though I would never admit it, ever.

Even Fury adored the young girl even though he, like me, wouldn't admit it; he was too proud for that.

By the time I finally made it to the Arc room…I had decided that I had been an idiot. I didn't want to admit it…but I had been.

Part of me was surprised that the others weren't back yet…surly they weren't _still_ drooling over Xavier's school where they?

"You know," I said, speaking for the first time in a while as I looked up at the Arc. "This is more area then mine."

The large Arc was flickering wildly, and while it hadn't overloaded yet, I was worried that it soon would if I didn't fix it.

Penny simply looked up at me, her large vivid green eyes lacking the usual spark they held…they were practically dull without it.

Shaking my head I just turned my attention back to the Reactor. Shifting my weight so that I could hold Pen and use both of my arms, I scanned the thin monitors that encircled the room.

I hoped, just for an instant, that nothing was seriously wrong…Starks stuff was more advanced then I was trained to deal with.

Thankfully, as I scanned the power readings and the system, it looked like they had barely touched anything. Literally.

The Arc was still running like it was susposed to, they didn't try to overload it to mess with the programs. They had simply disconnected the Arc from the building…seriously. They just pressed the _emergency disconnect_ button, and disconnected the Tower from the Arc.

With a roll of my eyes I was able to reconnect the Arc.

"Maybe those guys' weren't as professional as I thought." I muttered to myself. If Penny had been herself she would've had a witty comeback but she wasn't…so she didn't.

The Arc had been flickering because instead of the power flowing into the Tower, it was looping back into itself, causing the surges. If I hadn't disconnected it, it would have eventually overloaded.

I assumed that that was the intruders plan...that or they just wanted to turn the power off.; one of the two.

If I had been them I would have put in a virus or scrabbled all of the codes, but the men who did this were obviously idiots…oh well.

With a light smug feeling I pulled Pen into a better position on my hip and smiled lightly as the Tower hummed back to life.

"Well," I said glancing down at the silent toddler, "one problem fixed."

Penny just gazed up at me and I had to stop myself from rolling my eyes, Tony wouldn't believe it if he saw it himself.

There was just something about Penny that…I don't know…opened up a part of me that had been hidden for years…

I guess that spending all of this time with Penny had been good for me.

I don't know if Pen had planned this all along or if she had just been doing this to spite me, but it ended up being interesting. Something happened during that attack…not only did I realize my mental war…but I suppose the more…maternal side of me came out.

But I was never going to say that aloud to anyone. Ever.

One look at Penny's blank face and I sighed again.

"Okay, let go find out what's taking your Daddy so long…maybe he'll know a way to fix you." I muttered the last bit under my breath. There was no need to get Pen mad at me after all.

For a moment I thought I imagined it, but I swore that I saw _something_ flash in Pen's green eyes at the mention of Stark…maybe he could fix this.

Wondering if talking to the child would help get her back to her normal self I tried to think of something to talk about. Talking wasn't really my forte so I just started, not really sure what to talk about.

"I don't know what you think, but I've definitely had enough excitement for one day." I stated hoping that this would work. "How about after we give your dad a call we see if Barton is still interested in introducing Thor to the human concept of movies?"

I really had no idea what I was doing, just was going to go with the flow I guess.

"You could invite your friends…what are their names…Insania and Hell? Or even Mortem I think his name was…do they like movies? Well your guys are teenagers…teens like movies right?

"I wouldn't know…I never really had the opportunity to watch TV when I was a teen." I paused for a moment as I noticed that Penny was blinking rapidly like she was trying to wake up. Feeling more confident I continued on, it seemed to be something.

"There are a lot of things that I never got to do growing up. I know that there are a lot of things that I should say to you Penny…I've well, I've been a bit of a bitch to you. While I don't admit it to anyone and if you tell anyone I've said it…I'll make it look like Barton pranked you…but I'm sorry…

"Looking back now…I realized that well…I guess part of me was a bit jealous. You have a loving family…well; if you call Tony…yeah your dad adores you. You have great…if strange…friends, and well, I gave up on ever having that before I was even this tall." I motioned to my waste and Pen shifted again. "I don't want your pity, nor anyone else's for that matter. I never really told anyone about my past…I mean sure SHIELD knows the basics, but they've never pushed for details. Out of everyone, Barton knows the most…being my partner and all…

"But it's no excuse for how I've been treating you. But I swear, if you breathe a word of this to anyone…" Penny looked up at me and her eyes seemed to light up for a moment.

However, before I could ask if she was back, Jarvis' voice interrupted our little moment.

"Agent Romanoff."

"Jarvis, up and running again I see." I stated with a small smile. Maybe now things were starting to turn around.

"…system reboot has taken longer than anticipated. Agent, there are intruders…"

But I interrupted him again, "Intruders!" I exclaimed my mind instantly calming into my battle mode.

"…behind you!..."

I twirled around and was barely able to dodge a bullet as the gunshot was fired.

'I thought I got rid of all of you!' I exclaimed at myself.

Damn.

* * *

**Hey! I updated! Be happy, especially since my friend is sleeping over and I am introducing her to Studio Ghibli movies! She loves anime; I was surprised to find out that she had never seen them.**

**She says hi!**

**Read!**

**I know romanoff is a bit OOC but hey, I don't really care. **

**Oh well, my writing is a bit rusty…that's what happens when you don't write for almost a week.**

**Well, I'm back!**

**Hope you liked it!**

**Cp**


	48. Didn't Ask(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**Just because I haven't been around, doesn't mean I own a thing. Thanks to all of you for not suing me! ;)**

* * *

(Romanoff's POV)

Clenching Pen to my chest I turned on my heel and fled down a side hall.

Normally I wouldn't run from a fight, but I had Penny with me. She didn't need to get hurt any more then she already was.

"What are they doing here?" I asked Jarvis as I sprinted down the hall and turned into another. "How did they even get in?!"

With the Tower up and running, and Jarvis back online the Tower was probably more secure then the Helicarrier...though no one in their right mind would tell Fury that.

My senses were on high alert and I was determined to be ready for anything.

"I do not know the source of the security break. They had already bypassed my sensors by the time I was once again operational in the Tower." Jarvis reported with a sigh, causing me to scowl.

I had checked the Tower three times before I brought it back online...how did I miss them?!

I opened my mouth to ask if the rest of my idiotic team was on their way but Jarvis must have guessed my question for he answered me before I could even ask.

"Mr. Stark will be at the Tower in less than five minutes, and the rest of your team is close behind him." Jarvis stated smugly and I almost sighed in relief.

Maybe Tony would know a way to fix his daughter, not to mention I wouldn't be the only one fighting. Usually I only ever worked with Barton, if I worked with anyone at all. But it seemed that everything was changing and I didn't have much say in it. Not to mention I didn't want to put Penny in any more danger then necessary...not in her current state anyway; any other time she could take care of herself.

"Engage emergency protocol 48-BX9." I stated. The lights dimmed and turned red I grinned as the whole Tower groaned, going into Lock Down.

I knew that all over the Tower, steel doors were sliding shut over doorways, vents, and windows. All doors were being locked, and nothing in the Tower was accessible by anyone but Jarvis.

I didn't even want to think about what would happen if Jarvis malfunctioned.

The stairwell door slid open for me and I was really glad to have the AI on my side. Making my way swiftly up the floors I asked, "You wouldn't know what is wrong with Penny, would you?"

"I am sorry; Miss Penny's current condition is a mystery to me." The AI answered and I almost groaned. I had been hoping that Jarvis would have some answers. Realizing that if Jarvis knew about Pen's condition, then Stark probably also did, I grimaced and asked, "Does Stark know?"

I really didn't need Stark jumping down my throat about hurting or allowing his daughter to be hurt.

"He is aware that something is wrong with young Penny." Jarvis replied and I could tell by his voice that he was worried about the child in my arms.

Tony was going to be pissed...I just hoped that the intruders would draw his attention away from me. Okay, I might be slightly responsible because I was supposed be to watching Penny, but I wasn't the one who actually hurt the child.

Just I slid onto the landing of my floor, the lowest floor in the Avengers' quarters a loud explosion rocked the building. The stair's shook slightly and I glanced down to the floors below to see the men streaming into the stairwell. I paled and started running farther up the stairs.

"Jarvis!?" I exclaimed in question, not only was I wondering just _how_ they managed to get into the stairwell since I saw the barricade door slide shut behind me, but Jarvis controlled the Tower. He should have prevented them from entering.

I needed to get to the main floor, which was Stark's, (where all the commotion with Loki took place). Not only was Stark's floor the most well protected, it was also more defendable. No one knew exactly what Tony had done to the level, but he had gotten very paranoid after the whole thing with Loki. Not even Bruce or Pepper knew everything that the Tower, and therefore Jarvis, could do.

"Panel on your right." Jarvis replied just as I hit the landing to Barton's level. A hidden panel by the door slid open revealing a whole compartment stocked full of weapons and other things I couldn't identify.

I grabbed the two handguns that looked like they had been put there for me; after picking them up I recognized my initials on the side. Huh, they were put there for me. I also grabbed a Taser, a shrunken bo-staff and various other small things that I couldn't identify. But it was Stark...he made some damn good weapons that others couldn't even dream of.

"Agent Romanoff, may I suggest activating the personal shield? It seems that your pursuers are ascending the stairs quickly." Jarvis intones and you could hear concern in his voice.

I looked down at the items in my arms and noticed a small black cube that had a clip on it to attach to a belt. My eyes widened as I recognized it, it was a personal shield, just like Jarvis had said.

I should have recognized it sooner; Pepper and Tony always had one on them after all.

'Thank you Stark.' I thought to myself as I clipped the shield onto my belt and flipped the switch.

A low hum filled the air for a moment before vanishing. Feeling more confident, knowing that I now had some protection I adjusted Pen's position on my hip before continuing quickly up the stairs.

"Jarvis!" I called out sharply as I cocked the gun in my hand and strapped the second to my thigh. The rest of the gadgets I had gotten were now either strapped to or kept in pouches on my belt. "Their ETA?"

In a flash I was past Roger's floor, and half way to Coulson's. I didn't know why the senior agent had his own floor in the Tower, but I wasn't going to ask.

There was a stiff moment of silence and felt like I was suffocating as I passed Coulson's floor. I felt a flash of fear; they hadn't disabled the AI had they?

My momentary fear was relieved when Jarvis replied, "Mr. Stark will be here in two minutes. He asks that you get to the living room in the penthouse quickly."

Nodding to myself I glared determinedly at the stairs above me. I tried not to worry as the pursuing men's voices got louder and louder. It seemed that like me, stairs didn't stop them for long.

As I passed Thor's floor I paused to take a quick glance behind me, and paled.

They had climbed the levels much quicker than I had, and were only four floors below me. My hand instantly went to my belt, and I almost cursed when I remembered that I didn't have any of my normal weapons with me. Glancing down at a black translucent container that held hundreds of tiny pellets realization came over me. I didn't even pause to wonder what they did as I quickly poured them down the two levels of stairs behind me.

Leaving the container on the ground I continued on up the stairs, barely even pausing to look down at the babe and say, "This would be so much easier if you would just wake up."

I then realized that I was right...it was like she was sleeping...or sleepwalking. I felt like smacking my head on the wall, but that wouldn't help right now so I restrained myself.

It happened just as I passed Bruce's floor, small explosions rocked the stairwell and I grinned smugly.

"Exploding pellets...nice one Stark." I said to myself, quickly continuing on. The explosion probably only stalled them, and I wasn't planning on sticking around.

"Almost there." I tried to calm the child who had started to squirm. Was she starting to remember something, or was something wrong?

I almost sighed in relief as we reached the landing of the penthouse...Stark's part of the Tower. The barricade door slid to the side as I approached and I was extremely grateful that Tony had created that AI.

I quickly stepped into the large side hall that connected the kitchen to the living room.

This floor wasn't as dark as the rest of the Tower, the lights were slightly brighter, but it was still darker then I was used to it being. Well, the window wall was covered with 3inch thick barricade metal sheets after all.

Entering the living room I noticed that two secret compartments in the floor opened up, revealing a hoard of weapons, and gadgets including suit pieces for Tony, an extra shield for Steve, two quivers and another bow for Barton, a huge sword for Thor (where he got that I had no idea), lots and lots of guns and knives for me, and strangely, and slightly amusingly, there was a few pairs of purple pants obviously for Bruce.

"Huh." I stated, pleasantly surprised. Maybe Stark actually had a brain.

I was snapped out of my thoughts as an explosion rocked the Tower. It wasn't a particularly large explosion, and it took me only a second to realize what had occurred as another shook the wall.

"They're trying to break through the blast doors." I muttered. Damn.

"Indeed. My calculations show that they shall succeed in twenty seconds." The AI said and I scowled.

"You could have told me this!" I exclaimed quickly pulling a large knife out of the compartment before it closed.

"You did not ask." Jarvis replied and I wanted to throw something at his head…if he had a head.

I knew that Stark would be here soon, I just had to hold off until then. I scanned the room before looking down at Penny. I had to keep the men at bay, but I wasn't going to let Penny be in the middle of the fight either.

Unclipping the shield from my belt I nodded to myself. I had a plan.

* * *

**I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW!**

**I stink. (and this is super short...oh well)**

**It's been almost a week since I've updated and I'm sorry. I really am. **

**It's just that school has been a lot of work, I'm addicted to Merlin, and I have less then 24 hours to finish my Halloween costume for this dance that I'm helping do…yeah.**

**Not to mention that I'm also trying to finish one of my novels by the new year so I can enter it in the Amazon writing contest.**

**I don't know if I will be able to get back into the whole, update everyday thing…that did take a lot out of me.**

**Thanks for not hating me!**

**Cp**


	49. Really Were in Hell(unbeta'd)

Awakening

**You guys all rock! And I am awesome, but I would be amazing if I owned anything.**

* * *

Still Romanoff POV

Ignoring the explosion that signaled the destruction of the barricade door I glanced down at the small girl in my arms.

With determination flooding through me, I unclipped the shield from my belt and clipped it onto the back of Penny's dress.

Scanning the room I looked for a safe place for Pen until Stark and the others got here. Spying a table in the corner I walked over...not the best place but hey, I needed to keep an eye on her.

I placed the girl under the table and said, "Stay here."

She didn't respond but I swore that something sparked in her eyes.

I barely had time to step away as a group of twenty men ran into the room.

"Where is the girl!" One of the men, I assumed the leader, asked. I glared at him, and resumed my stony facade.

"That is none of your concern." I stated coldly, falling back into my usual persona. Even though part of me had enjoyed being the concerned baby-sitter...there was something comforting about my assassin personality.

"Now," I practically hissed, "are we going to do this the easy way or the hard way?"

The leader's eyes were the only part of his face visible because of a hard, black metal mask he and the others wore. I almost smirked as those cold grey eyes narrowed, and I could tell that he was smirking.

I had to hold back a sneer as they shifted slightly.

"Wrong choice." I deadpanned and suddenly, everything burst into motion.

I flew at the men, my gun in one hand and my knife in the other. I ducked under the first man's legs and sliced the back of his knees as I spun away. I heard his body dropped to the ground but ignored his pitiful cries of pain. They would be sorry they messed with me.

Two men lunged at me but I jumped over their heads with a flip. My knife slid into the first man's back and he instantly fell to the ground. A glint caught my eye and I instantly dropped to my knees to avoid the blade heading for my face.

I jumped back up behind the man with the knife and with a swift swing of my arm he fell to the ground unconscious.

I ducked just in time as gun shots flew through the air, bullets flying through the space that my head had occupied only a moment before.

Rolling on the ground I slid a few round balls, smoke bombs I hoped, out of their container clipped to my belt and threw them onto the ground in front of me.

Thankfully I had been right and I couldn't help but let a feral grin appear on my face as smoke filled the air and everyone's sight was limited to the ends of their noses.

I however didn't share the disadvantage that the other faced. I knew how to fight relying on my other senses…I could kill by sound alone.

Taking a deep breath I slid through the mist, my knife slicing at ankles as my second knife flew into my hand.

It didn't take long for the others to realize what I was doing, but there was little they could do.

I stayed low so the flying bullets just flew above my head and I never stayed still. Staying still sometimes got you killed.

Just as the smoke was starting to clear another explosion rocked the Tower, except this one was closer than the last.

For a moment I thought that it was reinforcements for the intruders…but then the smoke was blown away and Stark's voice filled the air.

"You are in my home…I do not believe that you were invited." His voice was cold and hard, even with the deepening effects of the suit.

I never felt so happy to see the billionaire in my life…not that I would ever admit that.

"So," Stark said as he aimed his repulors at the men. The sunlight streaming in behind him along with the remaining dust and smoke in the air gave him a frightening yet inspiring look about it. It helped that even though his faceplate was down you could just _tell_ that he was glaring.

"You are going to leave. Now." He hissed there was a moment of silence before the remaining men just nodded to each other before jumping back into battle.

Tony and I barely spared each other a glace as we leaped in to deal with the threat.

Stark was a power house that even I was startled by. He blasted and smashed his way through the remaining men, leaving bodies and destruction in his path.

I paused a moment, thinking that nothing was going to stop his path of fury.

My eyes widened and I managed to duck in time, "Stark!" I cried out, but it was too late.

Stark turned around only for a large knife about the size of his foot to slide into his breastplate.

"Damn!" I heard Stark hiss over the com.

I don't recalling flipping around and grabbing the responsible man by his throat, but I do remember wishing that the crack that echoed through the air as I broke his neck was a bit more satisfying.

Tony fell onto his knee as he pulled the knife out with a grunt. My eyes widening further as I noticed it dripped with blood.

Then, everything proceeded to go to hell.

"We have a problem out here!" I could hear Rogers yell over the com.

"Well we have one in here!" I snapped back as I got to my feet. I needed to get to Stark…the knife could have hit a number of vital organs.

The world seemed to freeze for a moment, and then it exploded.

A group of numerous men swarmed the room, each one dressed in dark armor the others had worn. I scowled, this needed to end!

"Enemy jet engaging, I repeat enemy jet engaging!" I heard Barton exclaim over the com.

I cursed in Russian; this was the last thing we needed.

"You all will die today." One of the new men stated coldly, I recognized his accent but I couldn't place it….

"THAT! Is. Enough."

I whipped around at the voice, relief flooding through my veins.

Penny stood there, tall, strong, with an angry look on her face.

Her bright green eyes glowed with power as electricity crackled around her.

"You will leave them alone." Penny demaned and for a second, I could see the girl that so many feared…

"Target spotted." One of the men muttered.

A bright white light filled the room as the men ran forward. They suddenly fought with extreme power. These weren't the humans I fought before…

These men were beyond anything that could be called human.

I was knocked to the ground before I even managed to blink, and Tony was thrown into the wall.

Lightning exploded around us as Penny attacked. Men flew into the air and some burst into flames. I heard the telltale sound of metal piercing skin and knew that Penny wasn't pulling any punches.

Then, something unexpected happened.

A man walked right through the electrical storm that was Penny's shield at the moment.

A look of surprise passed her face before the butt of a large gun slammed into her head.

As she fell to the ground I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

That kid was powerful, more so the probably all the Avengers put together…she had Fury terrified and Thor's respect.

How the hell did that happen?

"Target required." The man's words chilled me to the bone…

No, he couldn't take her.

He just couldn't.

Where were her friends?

Where were the others?

Where was Tony?

The men holding me down tightened my grip as I tried to move.

"Stay still or you'll lose that pretty little head of yours." One hissed in my ear.

"You'll loose more then that when we're through with you." I hissed back, and had to bite back a gasp as my head was slammed forcefully into the ground.

Muttering some chosen words in Russan I saw the spinning form of Penny being carried out towards the widow.

There was a loud screech as a jet flew by. The widow's rattled and the men smirked.

Then, one by one they all jumped out the window, a light on their belts blinking.

My vision still spinning I stumbled after them, only to see them being carried away by suspension cords attached to the jet…Penny along with them.

I cursed in Russian as my knees gave out beneath me.

Stark….

I suddenly remembered the wounded man and managed to activate my com with a shaky hand.

…yeah, I definitely had a concussion.

"Man…down….Medical team requested immediately…" I managed to gasp out.

"We're on our way." Barton's strong voice did little to stop the growing worry and terror that grew in my stomach.

They had Penny….and Tony was hurt…

"What in the Allfather's name happened here?!"

I turned my head to see a darkly dressed trio standing in the middle of the room.

It took me a moment but I was finally able to recognize them. It was Loki, his wife and his daughter.

The wife ran to Tony's side as Loki and…Hel….made their way towards mine.

"We come back...I fully ready to apologize on my knees….and find this place in worse shape than _I_ left it…" Loki was rambling and we all knew it.

Hel rolled her eyes and interrupted sharply, "Shut up Dad."

She then turned her hard gaze towards mine and said, "Where's Penny."

"That is what I would like to know." Another voice joined us, it was cold but soft and right now sounded very pissed.

My eyes flickered to the hole in the wall that held a new figure….Pen's boyfriend, the dark scary one.

'Damn…' I thought to myself as I felt the world darkening.

Now we really were in hell.

* * *

**SEE! You should be HAPPY! I UPDATED!**

**oh, and guess what? I SAW THOR!  
YAY!  
YAY!  
YAY!  
^.^**

**I know, I'm hyper and happy…but I don't care! **

**It was awesome and the graphics were amazing and…and…and…**

_**Penny appears and smacks Cp over the head with a frying pan. "NO SPOILERS!"**_

"_**But…." Cp whines but she shuts up at the Immortal's glare.**_

**Penny is a meanie….but oh well! I can't wait till it comes out on Disk and I can write my verson. But I still have a long way to go till that happens.**

**Things are seriously going to be different in mine, like that one scene where ^*^&^*&^*&^*^%&^%*%&^**_**Penny cover's Cp's mouth**_

…**.Won't happen at all! **

_**Loki appears with a whirl of blue and exclaims, "I AM…."**_

_**Cp then slapps Loki and Pen drags him off back to his daughter. **_

"_**IF I'm NOT ALLOWED TO TALK ABOUT IT THEN NEITHER ARE YOU!"**_

***sighs* **

**Now that that's all sorted out I'm really sorry that this has taken so long, and I know that I've really sucked recently. Not to mention that that was a cruel cliff hanger to leave you all with…**

**Eh, the whole Romanoff POV thing is finished now I think….**

**ANYWAY!**

**BE GLAD I UPDATED!  
and I'll try to update faster.**

**See ya'lll later….**

**AND GO SEE THOR! IT WAS EPICNESS INCARNATED! (okay I'm exaggerating because I'm hyper but still!)**

***tear* …I feel so bad for Selvig….OOPS SORRY SPOILER! **

**SORRY!**

**I swear, I'm done now!  
I'll be going now so that I don't ruin it for anyone…**

**;)**

**Cp **


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